


Dragon Flyz, novelize!

by Dragonkeeper14



Category: Destiny (Video Games), Dragon Flyz, The Matrix (Movies)
Genre: Dragon Flyz/Matrix/Destiny X-Over, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-12
Updated: 2020-09-15
Packaged: 2020-12-09 13:28:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 25
Words: 66,964
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20995574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dragonkeeper14/pseuds/Dragonkeeper14
Summary: Here, I present my transcription of the story of Gaumont Pictures' serial, 'Dragon Flyz', along with a few additions and subtractions of my own.





	1. Flight is Might

Battle Song: Watch the Skies

“Flight is Might!  
Watch the skies, for Dragon Flyz;  
Dragon Flyz, maximise!  
When Dread Wing's forces long to rise,  
Dragon Flyz, maximise.  
A brave surprise, to hold the eyes:  
Dragon Flyz, maximise!  
Man and Dragon live as One,  
fighting Dread Wing 'til the battle's won!  
On a wing and a prayer,  
The fight to survive is in the air;  
Before the Earth goes dark and dies,  
The only hope is in the Skies!  
Watch the skies, for Dragon Flyz!”.

Chapter I: Flight is Might!

The Earth dies. There was no-where Man could run. And in the great Cataclysm of the Fortieth Century, only those who could survive the Inferno, remained. And when Chaos reigned supreme, the Fallen Angel prevailed. A new breed evolved, in the millennium that followed: creatures who would become Man's dreaded enemy. Man was forced into the Sky to escape the rage, of what we left behind. Yet, some-where, in the wasteland of Old Earth, lies Man's Second Chance. Now Man and Dragon live and fly as one, searching for a Paradise in the ruin of our once-beautiful planet: a place where we can build the World anew; a place we can once again call, Home.  
Until that day, Man and Dragon lived in Airlandis: a golden city above the clouds,“kept aloft by magic crystals and protected by the brave young Dragon Flyz”: the finest pilots in the world, on the backs of the bravest dragons. On the day when our story begins, four dragons had returned, with their riders, from a reconnaissance patrol; and as they drew nigh the city, their leader telephoned the Skywatch station:  
'This is Dragon Flyz recon. detail, dragonator Zenith reporting. Requesting drag-down clearance; repeat: requesting clearance for landing'.  
Skywatch answered: 'Cleared for entry, Zenith. Welcome back'.  
Said Zenith: 'O.K., dragonators: Estimated Arrival in 6 minutes. Take us home, Riptor!', and his dragon carried him gracefully to the runway.  
One of Zenith's brothers addressed his own dragon: 'It's show-time, Storm! What do you say we give them a Landing to Remember? –Let's dig that rip! Yoo-hoo, ah!'.  
Zenith called after him: 'Peak! No hot-dogging!'; and their sister worried: 'O Peak; not again'. Peak himself said: 'Whoa, watch out, Skywatch! Get out of the way and you'll be O.K.; up, up, and away!'.  
Once down the runway, Wing-Storm carried Peak off again, and Peak said: 'All right, Wing-Storm: once around the Bio-Spheres; a little stroll through the park before it gets dark'.  
The Bio-Spheres were great flattened domes of glass and metal, arrayed about the great basin near the center of Airlandis; they held all the animals humanity had rescued from the Cataclysm, and these were many. One held a rainforest; another, an ocean; another held a desert; another, a temperate forest; and still another, a polar ice cap. Others held mountains or grasslands; some held lakes; and others still, had gardens.  
Once past these Spheres, Peak said: 'Ah, enough sight-seeing for to-day, Stormy. Tour's over!' and turned Wing-Storm toward the runway. Meanwhile Skywatch announced: 'Dragon Flyz Team One approach: clear for landing!'.  
One by one, the dragons landed, and their riders announced themselves:  
'Apex clear'.  
'Zenith clear'.  
'Summit clear'.  
Behind them came the recalcitrant pair, whereof one announced (mostly to himself): 'And now, for another Peak Performance, by the one, and only, Ace Dragonator: Peak!'.  
He rode down smoothly to the runway; but Wing-Storm's wings became entangled as they landed, and the two of them spun nine times along the floor, before a disorderly stop.  
Someone said: 'Master Peak; are you all right?': this was Dram, a young man with the fine hair and broad features of an ape, but the curved horns of a ram. He was foster-brother to Zenith, Summit, Peak, and Apex, and the only mutant in the service of Airlandis.  
Zenith answered: 'He won't be, after I get through with him!'.  
Said Peak to his dragon: 'Wu-hoo, that was a perfect half-gainer, Stormy! We just have to work on that little-thing, and we'll be the envy of every dragonator in Airlandis!'.  
Zenith said: 'I told you to put that circus-act in check, Peak!'.  
Peak said: 'Hey; a little razzle-dazzle never hurts’.  
Zenith answered: 'One day, it could hurt. Big time. And not just you, but the rest of the team, too'.  
Peak said: 'Don't you think I know how to be responsible when it counts?'.  
Zenith retorted: 'Do you really want me to answer that?!'.  
Apex intervened: 'Enough, you two! –The battle's Down There, remember?'.  
Summit chimed in: 'Yeah, the fight's between us and Dread Wing, not each other. We're a family, remember?'.  
Zenith hummed his assent, and grew thoughtful.  
It now falls upon us to introduce Dread Wing, the warlord of the Netherworld below Airlandis: a dark and desolate country, where molten rock flowed in rivers and noxious fumes filled the air. The warlord's residence was Warnado: a great mechanical fortress in the shape of a mountain, full of secret and horrible chambers. On the occasion of our story, Dread Wing rode into Warnado on his dragon Blackheart, with a cry of: 'Wake up, my Gremwings! Your master is home!' and a cruel laugh, to which Blackheart added his roar.  
Gangrene awaited them in Dread Wing's throne room: the twisted, pale scientist, Dread Wing's advisor and chief engineer. Quoth he: 'Welcome back, Dread Wing; we missed you!' (though he was lying, of course).  
Having alighted in the throne room, Blackheart drank from the pool of magma beside the throne, and Dread Wing leapt off his back and said: 'Gangrene! Blackheart thirsts; but my thirst for power, is even greater'. Behind him, Blackheart raised his head and blew fire.  
Said Gangrene: 'Airlandis will soon run its crystal cycle, Dread Wing. The need for your ambers appears imminent. A visit from our neighbors in the Sky seems most likely'.  
Dread Wing repeated: ‘“Likely”?!’.  
Gangrene answered: 'Definitely'.  
Dread Wing said: 'Then we must make preparations, for their arrival! I will deploy a band out of my Gremwings on the outer permiter of Warnado, so they have a “proper” welcome'.  
When Dread Wing said 'proper', he meant 'improper'. Gremwings were horrible screeching insects, as big as house-cats, who obeyed Dread Wing's every command. Now they gathered in Warnado's center, under the great Mouth at its peak, and filled the air with their cacophonous screams. Dread Wing addressed them: 'Gremwings! Why do we fight? Are we not, all, brought on with the same scale?'. The Gremwings screeched on, and Dread Wing continued: 'I'll tell you why, we fight. We fight for blood! We fight, for the secret of the floating crystals! We fight, so that Warnado will rise, out of the trenches and into the clouds! Hear me, Chosen of the Breeding Pits! All in favor of bringing down Airlandis; all, in favor of your master, Dread: arise! –And seek out those, who descend upon us! Raise your wings, higher! And let me hear, your thunder!', and the Gremwings flew screeching into the open.

On Airlandis, in the Council Chamber, Councillor Joshua argued: 'Every day, every hour, every minute we waste in quest of a new homeland, we risk the annihilation of Airlandis!'.  
Councillor Aaron replied: 'There's a place out there, Joshua. I have seen it!'.  
The others started, and Joshua answered: 'That was a long time ago, Aaron; when your eyes were sharp, and your skills as a dragonator even sharper!'.  
Aaron looked at his crippled legs: to save which, he floated half-a-meter off the ground, in a suit of levitating armor, under the control of his crystal-tipped staff. Said he: 'My body may be blunted; but my mind is as sharp as the vision I see of the promised land'.  
Zenith added: 'My father's right, Joshua. Our future lies Down There'.  
Joshua said: 'No! Down There lies the Past: a past we can't erase! We can't go back to it!'.  
Everyone looked shocked. Joshua quoted the city's motto: 'Flight is Might'.  
Zenith said: 'Yes we can!'. They might have come to blows, but the whole city shook, and Aaron tottered from his insubstantial perch. Zenith caught him, and Aaron explained: 'It's a air-quake!'.  
All over the city, people fell from their feet and off their chairs, and Aaron said: 'The city is falling; it's the crystals! Look out!'.  
A ring-shaped bulkhead fell from the Parliament-house's ceiling, and came to a halt half-detached. Zenith ordered his brothers and sister: 'Crystal Reactors, now!'. At once, all four launched themselves on mechanical wings, with their battle-cry of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!'.  
Around Airlandis they flew, to the Crystal Reactors under the city proper, where Zenith addressed the Chief Engineer: 'Orac, what's happening?'.  
Orac stood, turned, and answered: 'Bum crystals, Zenith! They cracked under the pressure; take a look for y'self!'.  
Zenith peered at the nearest crystal. It looked whole; but when he peered closer, it burst. The city sank lower.  
Apex called: 'How soon do you need new ones?'.  
Orac said: '“Soon” isn't soon enough, Apex; we need them now. We're losing altitude fast! 320 meters per second!'. (This was terrible indeed). Summit answered: 'We're out of here then!’, and Zenith telephoned all the other dragonators on Airlandis: ‘This is Dragonator One: we have a Crystal Red Alert. Repeat: a Crystal Red Alert! This is not a drill'. To his siblings he added: 'Let's burn some wing!' and took off.  
All over Airlandis, dragonators took wing. The Dragons arose from their eyries. Everyone called: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!' and leapt from their launch-positions, with their mechanical wings unfolded.  
One by one, the dragonators settled into their dragons' saddles. With Zenith at the point, the whole flight descended earthward, into the interstices of the great hollow mountains, known as the Wind Pits, whose endless maze of tunnels supplied the only safe way through the terrible storms, called the Warp Winds, which covered the land below.  
Said Apex: 'These Wind Pits give me the Chills'.  
Peak added: 'And, these Wind Pits are the pits!'.  
Summit called: 'Going down! Next stop: Old Earth!'.  
As they flew, Peak said: 'Come on Stormy: bank left! Hey, watch your head, with your tail! Hey, aaaaaaaaahhh!'.  
Summit added: 'These Pits are getting a little hairy! Flying through here is like threading a needle with a dragon's tail!'.  
In spite of this, all the dragonators left the Pits safely. Zenith told them all: 'Keep it steady, Flyz. Breeding Pits: dead ahead'.  
As they flew low over the frothing lava, Apex remarked: 'It's a soup-scoop, Peak: routine drill'.  
Peak retorted: 'Nothing routine about it, Sis!'. Further along the flow, he added: 'That's some spicy dip!'.  
Apex said: 'Yeah: spicy as in “hot”! –Be careful, Peak'.  
Still further, Summit called: 'Zenith! Spot any Crystal?'.  
Zenith answered: 'No, but Riptor does! Follow me!'.  
Riptor flew over the crystal, and Summit's dragon snatched it behind him. Quoth Summit: 'There! Nice grab, Sky-Fury!'.  
Behind them, Apex's dragon seized another crystal, and Apex called: 'One crystal scoop, for one Airlandis Float!'.  
Behind them all, Peak said to Wing-Storm: 'What do you say we bring old Orac a double-scoop of ambers with a cherry on top?!'. Wing-Storm gave him a look of half-consent, and Peak said: 'Let's show them how we do an up-town. And I do mean: “up”!'.  
With that, Wing-Storm and Peak flew apart from the others. Said Peak: 'Come on Stormy, I know a short-cut around the old lava-pits. Hey Stormy! Storm! Störm!'.  
Even as he spoke, Wing-Storm seized a crystal; then ran into a contrary gust of wind, and flapped his wings awry, so Peak was pitched from his back and tumbled head-first toward the lava-pit itself. Dread Wing's Gremwings seized him as he fell.  
Said Peak: 'Wing-Storm! Come back!'. Wing-Storm roared and obeyed, but could not find him. Said Peak to the Gremwings: 'Buzz off! Hey, get off me! Ah…ah… aw! No! Noöö!'; but they bore him to Warnado. In his throne-room, Dread Wing heard the signal of victory in their screeches, and said: 'One down; four, to go! Then Airlandis… will be mine!'.  
The Gremwings carried Peak into Warnado, and through eerie yellowish tunnels, unto the very feet of Dread Wing, who said: 'Well done, my Gremwings! You've trapped a fine Specimen! This is the rarest of Insects: the elusive Dragon Fly of which only five, in the world, exist! [for he took Dram as the fifth, and counted all the other dragonators useless against himself]. But an Insect, is a Bug, and there are only two kinds of Bugs, I know: the Quick and the Dead!'.  
With that, he drew a crystal from the floor at Peak's feet, and said: 'This is what you came for, isn't it. This is what you came, to steal from me!'.  
Peak answered: '“Steal”? –We can't steal something when it's ours to begin with!'.  
Dread Wing demanded: 'You dare, judge me?' and shattered the crystal, so that Peak shut his eyes against the flying splinters. Dread Wing went on: 'You dare judge, a King?!', and Peak, who had earlier been on his shins, was forced onto his seat. He shouted: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!' and took to the air. Dread Wing answered: 'Huh? –Blackheart! After him!'.  
Blackheart swallowed his mouthful of magma and rose after Peak; and with his gigantic tail, swatted him to the floor. Said Dread Wing: 'Easy, Blackheart! Don’t break anything, yet. We still need his bones connected to one-another, to set our fly, in the web. After all: we want the Dragon Flyz to be one, big, happy family; and I promise you: that Family Reunion, will be: the last; and then: when the last Dragon Fly lies still in the wormy earth; I will have my jewel! I will have Airlandis!'.  
Fortunately, that day was not to come. The dragonators and their dragons (and Wing-Storm himself) had brought enough crystals to refuel the Reactors; and Airlandis rose to her proper altitude, and stayed there. Orac and his fellows smiled among themselves; but elsewhere, in the Communications' Center, Dram and a few Skywatch officers held the controls of a large Transmitter, while one called: 'Skywatch to Peak, come in Peak, do you read me? –Acknowledge!'.  
In came Zenith, Summit, and Apex, and Zenith asked: 'Any word from Peak, yet?'.  
Skywatch answered: 'We tried raising Peak on the Vox Box. There's no response, Zenith'.  
Apex said: 'I don't know what happened! –He was right behind me, and then he was gone!'.  
Zenith said: 'Try again! Keep on trying! We're going back down', and he, Summit, Apex, and Dram took off, upon their dragons, with Wing-Storm close behind them.  
In the Wind Pits, Dram said: 'I can smell: a human a mile away. But down here in the Breathing Pits, all I can smell is Death. And Destruction. I smell Upset'.  
Zenith answered: 'And I smell Dread'.  
By the time the dragonators emerged above the ground, it was dawn. Zenith ordered them: 'Everyone keep their Eyes open along with their Noses'.  
On a ledge above a river of lava, Dread Wing said to Peak: 'Do you believe, in Life after Death? O, you should! Because there is Life: a very painful Life'.  
Peak said nothing, and Dread Wing said: 'Before you go, though, you'll have to answer that, nagging question: can a Dragon Fly, fly, without wings?! Give him a helping hand, Nocturna!'.  
With that, Dread's second-in-command threw Peak from the ledge; and Peak, stripped of the armor from which his wings unfolded, fell hard and fast until a rope about his body stopped him, at double his own height above the lava. As he and the rope swayed in the shock of their halt, Dread Wing said: 'The pendulum swings! The clock has started ticking, for the family Dragon Flyz'.  
Not far away, Wing-Storm roared and started forward, and Apex called: 'What is it, Storm? –Apex to Team One: it's Peak! We got a lock!'.  
Zenith ordered: 'Everyone! Stay alert! Stay close. Set Windjammers to Maximum Power'.  
Around a bend in the stream of lava, Apex called: 'There he is!'; meanwhile, Peak struggled in his bonds and said to himself: 'Got to get out of this! Urah! Uh, come on!'.  
His effort was suddenly arrested by the sight of a great dark body, larger than many dragons, on its way to him through the lava itself, where no creature ought have been able to live. At this, Peak said: 'What the;––?!' and wondered whether his brothers and sister ought to be on their way to rescue him. Quoth he, to them: 'Guys;––– Guys!!!!' as a huge fishlike monster emerged from the lava. With a roar like the scream of metal, the monster opened its mouth to seize Peak, and he cried out in fear. His brothers and sister readied their weapons.  
Apex said: 'Windjammers up full!'.  
Zenith added: 'Jamming power!'.  
All shouted: 'Dragon Flyz, vaporise!'. At once, blue streaks of light leapt from their vambraces, and struck the monster, who roared again; sank under the lava; and dissolved. Dread Wing turned, just in time to see the Dragon Flyz enter his view of the canyon. Said he: 'Bravo! A noble effort! But we have a saying, down here on Old Earth: the family that flies together, dies together! Dreadnoughts attack!'.  
The air was suddenly full of screeching Gremwings, and Dread Wing gave the order: 'Destroy them! Destroy them all!'. He and Blackheart took to the air, and Nocturna followed; so too, their servant Fryte. The Dragon Flyz were surrounded, and very busy blasting Gremwings; Summit fought hardest, until Nocturna tipped him off Sky-Fury's back. With a long cry of terror, he fell toward the lava; but Dram and his dragon Titan flew underneath, and saved him.  
Fryte flew into the Wind Pits, after Apex and her dragon Blazewind. Quoth he: 'Chase is useless, Dragon Fly!’; but Apex answered: 'Did you know a girl likes to be chased?!'. Through the same Pit, Nocturna chased Summit (both on their own wings), until Titan interposed himself and snapped at Nocturna.  
Summit settled onto Titan's back and said: 'Thanks for dropping in, Drám!' and both said: 'Yes!' and clapped hands.  
Apex called: 'Over here, Fryte!'. He looked; but Apex said: 'Sorry! No touching on the first date!' and let him fall into the darkness. Then she and Blazewind rejoined her brothers.  
Peak, meanwhile, was in danger: for his rope had caught fire, and looked ready to break. Nearest to him, of his brothers, was Zenith; and Zenith and Riptor fought their way through swarms of Gremwings;–– Zenith with his Windjammer, and Riptor with claws and teeth;–– until none remained. Summit's voice came over the communicator: 'We're clear, Zenith. Go for Peak!'. Zenith did; but Peak's rope broke, and he fell toward the lava. Zenith and Riptor dove to catch him; but around the corner came Dread Wing on Blackheart. Riptor and Zenith retreated; but Wing-Storm caught Peak as he fell, and laid him alive, atop the ledge. Said Peak: 'Good catch, Storm! Thanks!'. On the backs of the other dragons, Apex called: 'Yes!' and Summit added: 'Way to go, Bro!', while Wing-Storm untied Peak.  
Elsewhere, Dread Wing and Blackheart were still in pursuit of Zenith and Riptor. To escape, Zenith and Riptor flew through a mountain; and when Dread Wing and Blackheart followed, the latter's wings broke the columns on either side, and surrounded the two evil creatures with falling rocks. On the other side, Dread Wing lied to Zenith: 'Don't fly off, the fun's just beginning!'.  
Zenith turned Riptor, and the two dragons rushed each other. Just before the collision, Dread Wing called: 'Higher!' and knocked off Zenith's helm as they rose. Said Dread Wing to Zenith: 'Your head is next!'.  
Zenith answered: 'Don't bet on it!'.  
Dread Wing laughed; he was the older of the two, and thought he had won at last. The dragons confronted once more, and Dread Wing gave the order: 'Burn them out of the sky!'. Blackheart filled the skies with fire; but Zenith and Riptor escaped around it, and Blackheart and Dread Wing became surrounded by their own flames. Dread called: 'Ah! I can't see! Blackheart! Blackheart! Get us out of here! Blackheart;–– O, no!', and both fell through another mountain, into the land beyond.  
The Dragon Flyz took a victory-formation. Zenith rode among them; and Peak said, with an offer of his free hand: 'Thanks, Big Brother. Flight is Might'. Zenith clasped his hand, and they rode side-by-side.  
On Airlandis, the song of victory filled the air; and Peak lay on a stretcher, newly treated for his wounds. Councillor Aaron said: 'They think of this as Paradise! –The only Paradise, is the one we destroyed'.  
Said Peak: 'That was a long time ago! This is what we have now: this is our little slice of Heaven!'.  
Aaron answered: 'Heaven is not Up Here, Son. It lies Down There, along with Mankind's Second Chance'.  
Apex said: 'We believe you, Father'.  
Aaron said: 'And I, in you. All of you! You carry the name Dragon Flyz; and you carry the hope of finding a place to start again'.  
Everyone said: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!' and took to the air on their mechanical wings (excepting Peak, who still lay on his medical bed), for an air-dance of victory. Said they again: 'Flight is Might!'.


	2. Egg Hunt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which one surprise leads to another, and Summit demonstrates his true courage…

Little did our heroes know, the Dawn of a New and Brighter Day, would soon be darkened again by the shadow of Dread's tyranny. His lust for the Dragon Flyz' destruction, would never end, until Airlandis fell from the sky.   
On one of their later voyages, the Dragon Flyz ran into a terrible storm of lightning, wind, and acid-rain, and Zenith said: 'We've got to secure those crystals and get back before this storm sucks us in! Let's ride, Riptor!'. Ride they did, and the dragon picked up a crystal. Said Zenith: 'You snagged it, Ript!'.   
Summit called: 'This dragon's lagging! Fury's acting kind of moody to-day!'.   
Apex called back: 'May be it's the thunder! Stay tight! Keep her head up!'. Summit obeyed, and rode lava-ward after Apex and Peak, with a cry of: 'Yee-haa!'.   
Peak called: 'Match that snatch, Sis!' and Apex answered: 'Got it!', as their dragons took a crystal each.   
Above them, Summit called: 'Come on Fury, come on Girl; let's snag a few!'. Fury croaked, and lowered her altitude. Quoth Summit: 'Easy, girl; there's one, Fury! Hey, get back! Go back! You missed it!'.  
Zenith called: 'Summit! What's wrong with Fury?'.   
Summit answered: 'I don't know. But what ever it is: she doesn't want to get too close to the lava-pool. I've never seen her like this before!’.  
Zenith said: 'Let's evac. Cut and fly! We're out of here!'. Summit saluted; but Fury roared and broke formation, ahead of the others.   
Apex called: 'Turn her around, Summit!'.   
Summit answered: 'Yeah. That's easy enough for you to say!'.   
Zenith ordered: 'Try to stay with her!'.   
Together, the dragons and dragonators returned to Airlandis; but Fury moaned with every wingbeat. Quoth Summit: 'Come on Girl;–– Calm down!'; but Fury roared again and laid herself on the runway, while the others dipped and launched to put away their crystals.   
Fury laid down her head with a groan; Summit dismounted, and caressed her; but she threw him aside and marched into the dragons' eyrie. Summit guessed: 'Maybe she's sick or something'.  
Fury threw open the eyrie's doors, roared to the white dragons who stood at the entrance, and flew within. When Summit tried to follow her, the two sentries stopped him.   
Summit ordered: 'Let me pass! She's my friend! –She needs me’; but Apex answered: 'Summit: there are some places even a friend can't go, like the Maternity Ward'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Fury's a mother?!'.

In Warnado, in his evil laboratory, the engineer Gangrene was at work over his frothing beakers. Said he to himself: 'To-day is the day the name of “Gangrene” will echo through Warnado' and poured a new mixture onto an enormous red ovoid. To this, he said: 'Now grow, you idiot seed. Grow!'.   
The seed did nothing, and Gangrene tipped it to the floor and said: 'Spawn, you stupid seed! Instead of wasting my time with you, I should have been working on making the Ship operative. If Dread discovered my actions, he will have my head'.  
But Dread, on a ledge behind him, had watched him from the start; and now he leapt into the laboratory and added: 'And your arms and legs as well! What are you doing, wasting Precious Time? I told you to make repairs of Warnado's engines; nothing must interfere with that!'.  
Gangrene said: 'I am sorry, my Supreme Dreadfulness. But as I'm in the final critical stages of a most crucial experiment: one that will make you Most Pleased’.  
Dread Wing said: 'I would be Most Pleased, when you follow my orders!'.   
Gangrene asked: 'Are not your orders to destroy your enemy: the Dragon Flyz?'.   
Quoth Dread: 'You mock me, you crooked man!'; but Gangrene sputtered: 'O no; please, let me explain: I intended to create;––help! It's caught me!'; for at that moment, the subject of his experiment stood up on a long stalk and grew tentacles, which it wrapped around its creator's neck and shoulders. Dread asked: 'And how did you accomplish this?'.   
Gangrene answered: 'I used a mixture, of mutane, combined with dragon bile, and treated this single paltry pod you see before you'.   
Quoth Dread: 'And it grew into something magnificently mutant! Could you do that with any living thing?'.   
Gangrene asked: 'What kind of living thing?'.   
Dread suggested: 'O, a young, unsuspecting dragon, acre'.   
With the tentacles still around his throat, Gangrene did not reply at once, and Dread ordered him: 'Stop playing with that plant, and answer me’.  
Gangrene asked: 'If you could just indulge me, Master: what exactly, did you have in mind?'.   
Dread answered: 'An old family recipe for destruction;–– O, it's quite simple, really'. He stamped on the seed, and the tentacles withdrew and left Gangrene on the floor, with a sore neck and a splitting headache. Dread continued: 'Add dragon egg, stir and mutate. Bake, until I have an army of mutant dragons, that will devour a Dragon Fly, and anyone who stands or flies in my way!'.   
On Airlandis, Fury had laid her egg, and now set up a trumpet-call to Riptor, Wing-storm, and the other dragons. Every dragon in the eyrie took up her cry, even to the very sentries; and Summit, who sat outside to await it, started from his reverie and laughed.   
A telescreen came awake before him, and Joshua said over it: 'Alert! All dragonators: scouts have reported, Sector Αlpha has been breached. A horde of Gremwings has crossed the Security Perimeter, and are flying toward Airlandis. This is a D-3 Alert! Go to Dragon Defense Deployment, now!'.  
The dragonators obeyed, and Summit said: 'Zenith, what am I going to do? Sky-Fury's still too weak. I'm dragonless'.   
Zenith answered: 'Sit this one out, Summit; we'll handle it! Let's zing some wing! Dragon Flyz, maximise!'. The other dragonators gave the battle-cry with him, and all but Summit mounted their dragons. Once on Riptor, Zenith telephoned the others: 'Everyone, battle ready. Gremwings don't forgive mistakes'.   
Peak answered: 'Thanks for the advice, Big Brother; but I don't plan on making any! Ya-hoo!'.   
With their work done, Skywatch turned back for their headquarters; but a net fell upon them, and Dread's second-in-command Nocturna landed on Airlandis. With her were three Dark Dramen, the gargoyle-featured henchmen of Dread Wing.   
A little later, and in the midst of the city, a small boy kicked a ball, and Nocturna's foot intercepted it. The boy ran to his mother, to ask 'who the newcomer was?'; and the mother identified her in a word, and fled, with her child in hand. Nocturna paid them no heed, but addressed her sidekicks: 'We must get the eggs at all costs! You know your orders: destroy all humans! Tear Airlandis apart!'. One of the Dark Dramen set off to do so, while the others stayed with her.   
Soon there were screams and shatterings all over Airlandis, and people running in all directions. Another message rang over the telescreens: 'Citizens of Airlandis! This is Joshua speaking! Secure and barricade your homes! Invaders have penetrated the city! Take refuge!'; but the Dramen broke the nearest screen. Summit, who heard him, set his Windjammer and leapt around the corner to kill the invader: 'Windjammer on full and now!' quoth he; but found only the rod with which the Dramen had broken things, abandoned on the floor. Summit asked himself: 'Where'd that Dramen go?', and examined the rod; but the Dramen jumped on him from behind, and for a moment the two punched and kicked and wrestled, until Summit threw the Dramen through a wall.   
Elsewhere, Nocturna and her two other henchmen approached the dragons' eyrie, and the sentries barred their way. Said Nocturna: 'Destroy the dragons!' and her two Dramen threw bolas around the dragons' claws and mouths. At length, Nocturna shouted: 'Enough! It's the eggs we came for! Now follow me!' and flew into the eyrie itself.   
At the entrance to the nesting-chamber, Nocturna said: 'Stop, here. Time for all good dragons to sleep' and threw a smoke-bomb into the dragons' wading-pool. At once, the air was full of sopor-gas. A moment later, the dragons lay senseless, and Nocturna and her henchmen flew into their territory.   
Near the edge of Airlandis, Summit pursued his Dramen into a corridor, and stopped; for he could not see his enemy. When he started forward, his enemy fell onto him from above, and both plunged through a window, off Airlandis and into the sky below. Said the Dramen: 'Your stupid wings, will not save you!’, and they fell still further.   
Summit answered: 'If I can't use mine, you can't use yours. We'll both die!'.   
The other said: 'Dramen want to die!’.  
Summit said: 'If that's the case, don't let me stop you!' and reached for his Windjammer; but the enemy answered: 'You choose your death, Dragon Fly!' and seized the Windjammer from him.   
Summit fell a dozen meters more; but unfolded his mechanical wings, and ascended to his enemy's altitude, where the Dramen now hovered on his own wings, with the Windjammer aimed at its master. Said he: 'Now, you will have the honor, to die by your own weapon!'.   
Summit answered: 'Whoa-ho-ho-ho-ho, careful there! I set the air-chamber on that jammer to overload. If you pull that trigger, I can't be held responsible for what happened'.   
The Dramen laughed and pulled the trigger; but a burst of light overtook him, and he fell to his death in the clouds below. Summit caught his Windjammer, set it anew on his arm, and called: 'Don't say I didn't warn you!', before he returned to Airlandis.   
In the eyrie, Nocturna bade her henchmen: 'Don't just stand there! Hurry; collect the eggs before the dragons awaken'. (One grey dragon stirred and growled, but could do no more). With an egg in each thief's hands (including her own), Nocturna opened an exit; but found Summit waiting for her. Nocturna snarled, and Summit said: 'Put down those eggs, Nocturna;–– gently. Or answer to me!'.   
Nocturna ordered her henchmen: 'Do as he says. Now do as I say', and nodded at Summit. Immediately the two Dramen attacked him from both sides. Nocturna, with Sky-Fury's egg still in her hands, advanced on the runway, but saw the Airlandian dragons return. Said she: 'The dragonators! We've held them until our precious cargo is safely on its way to Warnado!'. Summit shouted: 'No!'; but one of the Dramen struck him, and both led him off to another road. Nocturna flew back to Warnado alone.   
What had happened was this: when the Dragon Flyz neared Sector Alpha, Apex called: 'Gremwings, at 9.00!' and Zenith gave the order to fire; but the Gremwings immediately turned back, and Peak asked: 'What's going on? They're retreating, and my jammer's not even hot!'.   
Zenith answered: 'Your gut can tell you, We were duped! Back to Airlandis; double-timing!'.   
A few hours later, the Dragon Flyz surrounded Fury, who lay on the golden floor full-length, made miserable by the loss of her egg. Summit's right arm had been broken, and his head bruised, and he now stood in mufti. Said he: 'We've got to get Fury's egg back. What could Nocturna want with it?'.   
Zenith answered: 'I don't know. We've got a couple of Dark Dramen in the lock-up, but they're not talking'.   
Peak said: 'Don't worry, Summit'.   
Summit answered: 'I failed her!'.   
Apex corrected him: 'No, you fought for her! And all of us are going to do the same! We'll get it back, I promise (and I promise you too, Fury)', who roared her thanks.   
In Warnado, Gangrene's laboratory was full of electricity, and Dread Wing asked: 'How much longer must I wait, Gangrene?', who answered: 'Soon, Dread Wing; very soon!', and dropped the egg into an incubator. When he opened this a moment later, he expected Dread Wing's “army of mutant dragons” to emerge at once; but the egg stayed still. Dread Wing asked: 'What's wrong, Gangrene: Why isn't it working?!'.   
Gangrene answered: 'The mixture;–– must disassemble the Genetic Code. The transformation will happen soon!'.   
Dread Wing grabbed him and said: '“Soon” will be too late for you, you scraeling'; but even as he spoke, the egg hatched, and a single green dragon-cub flew into the room. Dread Wing said: 'O! Excellent!'.   
Gangrene said: 'I'll trap it!' and caught the hatchling by the hind legs. The hatchling opened his mouth, and a strange blue blast leapt from its throat, and struck Gangrene unconscious. Dread Wing laughed and said: 'Beautiful!'.   
The hatchling settled upon his arm, and Dread answered: 'Come to me, Little One. You know I'm your true Master, don't you?'; but in came Fryte, Dread's third-in-command, and called: 'D'ead Wing! Dread Wing! Come now! Come nöw!'.  
Dread asked: 'What are you babbling about, you monosyllabic twit?’.  
Fryte answered: 'The D'agon Flyz attack! Now: cöme!'.  
Dread answered: 'Aha! They come bearing gifts for the infant. Let's repay their warm gesture! We will meet them in the air, with an all-out assault! Anything in the Sky, dies!'. With that, he left, and left Gangrene senseless on the floor.   
Outside Warnado, the Airlandian dragons flew low over the rivers of lava, all enraged, with terrifying battle-cries. A horde of screeching Gremwings rose to meet them. Among the dragonators, Zenith was in the lead, with Peak, Apex, and Dram behind him. Fury flew riderless behind Dram; and half of the garrison of Airlandis rode behind them. When the Gremwings neared her, Fury scattered them with her muzzle. Apex and Peak said: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!' and took to the air on mechanical wings. Apex shot down the first few Gremwings; then she and Peak, with a single giant blast, cut the horde in two.   
Elsewhere, Dram and his dragon pursued two more Gremwings into the forest around Warnado. Said he: 'You can't outfly Dram, Gremwings!' and leapt onto them from his dragon's back. This killed both Gremwings, and Dram ran upon the forest floor, until his dragon roared behind him. He answered: 'Now, Titan!' and leapt into the saddle. Titan took to the open sky again, with a victorious bugling.   
Blackheart drank lava from a pool outside Warnado, and Dread Wing leapt onto his back. Riptor and Zenith descended on them. To his followers Dread Wing roared: 'Attack!', and Blackheart roared after him and took to the sky. Riptor and Zenith confronted them; and for a moment, Riptor and Blackheart roared defiances and challenged one another, until Blackheart caught Riptor's throat in his jaws. To free himself, Riptor smote Blackheart with his tail; and Zenith fired his Windjammer at Dread Wing, but missed. Dread laughed, and Zenith said: 'Return what doesn't belong to you, Dread Wing'.   
Dread answered: 'The wants for the dead-man mean nothing, to me. Blackheart: burn his image into the sky!'.   
Zenith answered: 'Fire-shield!' and Riptor withstood the flame with his chest.   
Zenith said: 'Thanks, big Guy'.  
In swept the other dragons of Airlandis with their riders, and their claws, teeth, and Windjammers made short work of Dread Wing's defenses. Gremwings and Dark Dramen fell from the sky like rain, and the air was cross-hatched with the Windjammers’ blasts and the answering shots of the Dramen’s lava-launchers. Dread Wing's horde were surrounded, and forced lower and lower by nonstop salvoes. In the midst of all this tumult, Nocturna and her dragon Nightmare were both wounded. Dread himself retreated, under heavy fire; but he called, over his shoulder: 'Bring down all the dragonators you want! The newborn is mine!', and Blackheart roared defiance alongside him.   
With that, Blackheart and Dread Wing retreated into Warnado, and its giant Mouth shut behind them. Above, Apex shut her Windjammer, and Zenith said: 'The other dragonators will take care of Dread's Gremwings. This is our chance. Let's take it!’ and took to the air on mechanical wings. Peak answered: 'You lead; I'll follow', and did the same.   
At the Mouth, Dram said: 'Entrance to Warnado, un-guarded. All clear'.   
Zenith answered: 'Yeah; clear as static'.   
Peak said: 'He means: “we're expected”'. Fury landed beside them, but Apex said: 'Sky-Fury, you must leave this to us. There are some places even a dragon can't go'. They flew into the Mouth, and Fury stayed behind; but she roared in discontentment.   
When the Dragon Flyz arrived on the floor, doors burst from the walls all around them, and Dark Dramen filled the room. The leader of these ordered the others: 'Get Dramen traitor! Get dragonators!'.   
As his deformed compatriots advanced upon himself and his brethren, Dram gave a thunderous bellow, seized another door from its frame, and struck down the nearest Dark Dramen with it. Another Dark Dramen lashed out with its battle-claws (the characteristic weapon of their race, which they wore on their wrists); but Dram shielded himself with the door, and bade his friends: 'Go!'.   
Zenith said: 'He's right. Let's go!'.   
Apex asked: 'Will you be all right?'; and Dram answered: 'Yes; can do it. Go! Now!', and fought on.   
The Dragon Flyz, therefore, left the room by an open shaft. They flew quite a long way, half-blinded by the “grimy, yellow light”, and finally threw another door into a pool of lava.   
Peak asked: 'Where are we?' and Apex answered: 'Looks like we're just under the mouth of Warnado'.   
Zenith said: 'Dread must have escaped down this shaft, with his dragon. We find Dread, and we find Fury's egg'.   
Somewhat short of breath, Dram arrived behind them, and Peak asked: 'Where'd you leave your buddies? You Guys have a fight, or something?'. Dram answered: 'They will not call Dram “traitor”, again. Huh?'.  
The room was suddenly full of a horrid screeching, and its originators soon followed, to Apex’s warning call of 'Gremwings!'.   
Zenith ordered the others: 'Windjammers, full power!'. As the Gremwings advanced on them, the dragonators fired at will until not a Gremwing remained. Apex said: 'This way'; and she, Zenith, and Dram took wing, with their usual call of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!'. Peak echoed them, and followed. Once in the throat of Warnado, they swerved rightward and down, into Dread Wing's throne room.   
Said Dread Wing: '“Abandon hope, all ye who enter here!'.   
Quoth Zenith: 'Give it to us, Dread Wing'.   
Dread Wing answered: 'O, I plan to give it to you, Zenith; right between the slits of your human eyes! –Kill them!' he added to Fryte and the Dramen, and the latter started forward, to Fryte's call of 'Attack!'.   
Said Peak: 'It ain't over yet, Dread-head!'. Said Dread Wing to Nocturna: '“Hope springs eternal”'. Nocturna answered: 'And so does death. Destroy them'.  
At her command, Fryte and his Dramen advanced; but they were stricken to the floor by the Windjammers. Dread Wing answered: 'Show them your power, my little one!' and raised the hatchling on one arm. Apex started forward with a cry of: 'Look! It must be Fury's dragon-cub!'; but the hatchling sprayed her at it had Gangrene, and stopped her as she came.   
Zenith struck down a Dramen and called after her: 'Apex!', who answered: 'I can't move', in some surprise. The Dragon Flyz flew over Fryte to assist their sister; but when they all stood before him, the hatchling sprayed them as it had Apex. Now all four stood motionless.   
Said Dread Wing to his servants: 'Please, go ahead', and Fryte and his Dramen started toward the Dragon Flyz; but at the next moment, Sky-Fury's flew into the throne room, knocked them all down, and circled back to face her son. The hatchling met her gaze; and in the language of dragons, she told him who she was and where his true loyalties lay. With joy in every line of his body, he flew beside her. 'No!' shouted Dread Wing; '–You're mine! I am your Master! My mutane runs in your blood!'. The hatchling merely sprayed him as it had the Dragon Flyz, and Nocturna with him.   
Said Zenith: 'Meltdown. I'm starting to un-freeze'.   
Peak answered: 'Me too! Ah, what do you say we give these Guys the Cold Shoulder?'.  
The Dragon Flyz flew out, and Dread Wing too thawed. When they had gone, he broke free, and the name of Gangrene echoed through Warnado.   
On Airlandis, later, in the dragons' eyrie, Summit said: 'Looks like mother and cub are doing just fine. Nobody's going to separate them, ever again'. Partly to prove him right, Fury nuzzled her cub, and he nuzzled her in return. Apex added: 'Or separate us'.   
Said Peak: 'Hey, you know, Summit: he sort-of has your chin'.   
Apex added: 'And your nose, too'. All the dragonators laughed, and all cheered together: 'Flight is Might!', and Fury roared in victory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any questions?
> 
> No, I don't know who the hatchling's father was, and neither does anyone, in the story or out of it, but Fury. 
> 
> Dread's quotation from Dante's 'Inferno' introduces the idea of the villain as a pseudo-intellectual, and something of a show-off. This is seen throughout the story overall.


	3. Dark Dramen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which we learn some history of the post-apocalyptic world, and discover a new and more complex villain…

Ah, to hear the sweet sound of laughter, once again! Such a warm, wonderful sound!  
But the laughter would soon die and that warmth would turn cold; for now, the Dragon Flyz must confront an evil so powerful, it would turn the blood in Dread Wing's veins to ice. For this was an evil, born of Man and Dragon; an evil that walked on two legs; an evil called: Kraiko.   
The fight against this peril began in the Arctic Biosphere, where Aaron and Apex had gone to tag some snow-bears. When Aaron had tranquilized each bear, he laid a homing-device on its shoulder, and the bear arose and trundled into the distance. Said Apex: 'Off you go, boy. Why are we electronically tagging them, Father? The Arctic Biosphere isn't so large we couldn't find them'.   
Aaron answered: 'My hope is, they will not always live in this artificial world, Apex. One day I hope to release them back into the Wild. When we do, we'll want to keep track of them;–– with this,’ and showed her a small tracking-computer. A curious signal sounded in both their ears, and Apex asked: 'What is that, Father?'.   
Aaron said: 'I have no idea' and analyzed it. Said he: 'Someone is sending a powerful distress-signal from Old Earth. My tracking-unit, must be tuned to same frequency. Notify Skywatch. Find Zenith, and your brothers. We must deploy a rescue-team immediately'.   
Apex answered: 'Right away. Dragon Flyz, maximise!' and took to the air on mechanical wings, to find her brothers.   
Within an hour, all the Flyz gathered at the runway, with their dragons. Said Aaron: 'The distress-signal is getting weaker, every minute. Whoever is sending it, needs our help. There may not be much time'.   
Zenith promised: 'We'll get there as fast as we can'. He ran along Riptor's tail to his back, and asked his siblings: 'Are you ready, Dragon Flyz?'.   
Summit answered: 'Surfed up and ready to rip'. All four shouted: 'Flight is Might!', and the dragons launched themselves from the runway. Before long, they had entered the Wind Pits. As they descended, Summit called: 'We're losing the signal in the Wind Pits! We'll pick it back up outside on Old Earth!'.   
Moments later, the dragons flew gracefully from the Wind Pits, and over the landscape beyond, where the signal recovered its full volume. Further on, Peak asked: 'How long before we get there, Zenith?'.   
Zenith answered: 'We're coming up on the distress coördinates any minute'.   
Before long, Summit added: 'Scanner hitting Red; we're right on top of it!'.  
Sure enough, the Dragon Flyz now followed a deep trench or dry canyon, unto a crater at the far end, in which lay the source of the signal. Said Peak: 'O: look at the size of that thing!'.  
It was, in truth, enormous: a gigantic black oblong of metal, half bent in the waist, and as large as half of Airlandis. The dragons, as small beside it as butterflies beside a radio-amplifier, landed nearby, and the dragonators dismounted. Zenith shot the doors open with his Windjammer, leaned within, and called: 'Anybody here? –Come on, let's check it out!'.  
Once inside, Summit remarked: 'Wow. This place looks pretty ancient. This equipment must be 30th;–– 31st Century'.   
Zenith gave his orders: 'Peak, Summit, check the rest of the ship. Apex and I will see if we can find some kind of flight-recorder'.  
With that, he and Apex advanced to the forecastle, where they found a large computer.   
Quoth Summit: 'Come on, Peak. Let's do some sight-seeing'.   
Peak answered: 'Right behind you'.  
Apex typed at the computer's keyboard for a moment; then gasped, and said: 'I think I've got something!'.  
On the viewscreen appeared the videograph of an astronaut in his space-suit (man and suit encased in the machinery around them), who said: 'M'aidez, m'aidez. This is Space Station Galileo. Please acknowledge. Is there anyone out there?'; and again: 'M'aidez, m'aidez. This is Space Station Galileo. Please acknowledge. Is there anyone out there?'.  
Said Zenith: 'There's got to be more. I'll see if my helmet-com can drive a direct link to the recórd'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Let's double back to Zenith', and did so; but in the next compartment, he and Peak stopped, in surprise. Said Peak: 'All the escape-shuttles are missing!', and Summit added: 'Yeah, and if there ever was anyone aboard this Station, they got out;–– quick! Let's go!', and they returned to the forecastle.   
Zenith laid his helm on the keyboard and said: 'Computer, link with the onboard flight-computer. Extract all pertinent data'.  
His computer obeyed, just as Summit and Peak returned. Quoth Summit: 'It's a ghost-ship, Zenith', and a sudden clatter startled them all. Quoth Summit: 'What was that?!'. Said Apex: 'Let's get what we need and get out of here. I don't like this place'.  
Outside, Nocturna on Nightmare said: 'The signal grows stronger'.   
Dread Wing on Blackheart answered: 'And so does my anger, if the Dragon Flyz reach the signal before we do! Hurry, Nocturna!'.  
When the Dragon Flyz emerged from the broken Space Station, they found Dread Wing and Nocturna before them. Dread Wing laughed, and Zenith raised his Windjammer to kill him. Their war might have ended at that moment, had not a great shadow interrupted them.  
The shadow belonged to a fat dragon with a rather shapeless head, who settled upon a ledge, while his rider dropped to the floor of the crater. Dread Wing asked: 'Who are you?!'.  
The newcomer answered: ‘I, am Kraiko: leader of the Dark Dramen of the Highlands, and Master of All I Survey. You trespass on Dramen domain!?!'.  
Dread Wing answered: 'You are too late, my loud friend. I have already claimed this space-station as my own'.   
Said Kraiko: 'No! You defile my land, Fool!'.  
Dread answered: '“Fool”?! Do you know who I am? –I am Dread Wing: ruler of Old Earth, and Dispenser of your Death if you don't depart'.  
The Dragon Flyz mutely watched, and Kraiko said: 'No. You are merely the jackal who would chew on the bones of my dinner!'.   
Dread Wing, with a growl, said: 'Stand down, Dramen!' and put his lava-launcher to Kraiko's head. Over his shoulder, Kraiko shouted: 'Attack!'.  
Instantly, his followers leapt from hiding-places underground. To them, Kraiko said: 'Capture them' and indicated all the invaders. The Dramen advanced on the Dragon Flyz first; but the Flyz threw them back and shot stunning-blasts from their Windjammers.   
Said Zenith: 'Dragon Flyz, let's burn some wing and get out of here!'.   
Peak answered: 'I was just about to say the same thing'.   
All four hurried to their Dragons, who stood at attention, perfectly still, to receive them.   
Dread Wing wrestled down two of Kraiko's Dramen and called to Nocturna: 'Do not let the Dragon Flyz escape!'; but Kraiko interposed himself and scored Dread Wing's face with his battle-claws. (These were larger and stronger than those carried by the Dramen of the Lowlands, who served Dread Wing; and Kraiko bore two on each arm).   
The Dragon Flyz rode into the sky, and Peak called: 'Dark Dramen coming up on the right! Air-chamber to the max.'. All four said: 'Dragon Flyz, vaporize!' and destroyed the Dramen. Behind them came Nocturna on Nightmare and shot lava right and left. Peak said: 'Watch out!', but Summit caught a lava-shot on his helm, and Sky-Fury flew upside-down to save him from more. Quoth he: 'Let me return the favour!' and shot Nocturna out of her saddle. The evil creature turned upside-down as she fell, and Peak said: 'Wo-ho, looks like Nocturna really flipped for you, Summit! You've got to teach me that move!'. Said Zenith: 'Let's head for the nearest Wind-Pit, Riptor'. The dragon roared his agreement, and the Airlandians fled.   
Dread Wing pursued Kraiko, both on their dragons. Said Dread Wing: 'You made me lose the Dragon Flyz! –Blackheart: teach this mutant cretin a lesson he'll not forget'. Blackheart vomited fire, and Kraiko's dragon went down ablaze. Kraiko spread his wings and flew, and forced Dread Wing to the ground. When the dust cleared, Dread lifted a boulder over Kraiko, and brought it down; and Kraiko smashed it with his battle-claws and asked: 'Is that the best you can do?!'.  
They took to the air on their own wings again, and Kraiko plunged Dread Wing into a pool of green slime. At once, Kraiko roared and announced to the world: 'Old Earth is mïïïne!'. He folded his wings; but Dread emerged, dripping with the slime, and answered: 'You cannot destroy me, that easily'. Now the two villains rushed each other, and each smote the other's face with his fists, while above them their dragons circled and roared. At last, Kraiko pinned Dread Wing under one foot, and said: 'You fight well, rebel'.   
Dread Wing answered: 'Why do we fight at all, Kraiko? We are not the enemy. You and I have a common call; a shared destiny: to rule over all mutants!'.   
Said Kraiko: 'I am listening, rebel’.  
Dread continued: 'You want to rule Old Earth; I want to rule Airlandis, the flying city of the Dragon Flyz. Help me destroy the Dragon Flyz, once and for all, and I will leave you to rule alone over Old Earth'.   
Kraiko asked: 'And what of Warnado?'.   
Dread answered: 'So you do know who I am'.   
Kraiko answered: 'Yes: you are Dread Wing;–– soon to be ruler of Airlandis'.   
Dread Wing added: 'And you are Kraiko;–– soon to be ruler of Old Earth'.   
Kraiko let him stand and added: 'And;–– Warnado'.   
Dread answered: 'Yes, of course. You have my word (for what it's worth)'.

On Airlandis, the Dragon Flyz met with Aaron in his Library, where Aaron said: 'This space-station must have been one of the last to make it through the Warp Winds to Earth. Let's see what you picked up on the ship's Black Box, Zenith'.   
Zenith told his helm: 'Computer: show me the flight-record of Space Station Galileo'.  
At once, the videograph appeared on Aaron's own display-screen, of an astronaut in his space-suit, who said: 'This is Captain Elias Bristol of Space Station Galileo. The year is 3145: 25 years after the Cataclysm. We've decided to return to Earth, after finally sighting.… We are now entering some kind of Warp Wind. Tremendous force! Don't know if we can make it. This is a Zero-Gravity Station. Never meant to handle anything like this! But it will be worth it to see trees, and the Crystal Blue Lake'.  
Aaron asked Summit: 'You say you found no bodies?'.   
Summit answered: 'None; but all the escape-shuttles were gone. Yet a space-station of that size would have supported hundreds of people'.   
Apex asked: 'Where did they go?'.   
Everyone paused; then Peak said: 'Maybe they found those trees and that crystal-blue lake; maybe they found Paradise'.   
Aaron said: 'You must go back; retrieve the flight-recorder before Kraiko destroys it!'.   
In came Dram, and said: '“Kraiko”? If Kraiko lives, we should all be afraid'.   
Peak asked: 'You know this Guy?’.  
Dram answered: 'I thought he was story. A dark legend used to frighten Dramen children. He is a fearsome monster, without compassion; without mercy. If you return to Old Earth, I will fly with you! If Kraiko exists, he could be the one who destroyed my village' (for so, it seems, Dram had come to live on Airlandis).

In Warnado, Kraiko said: 'It is agreed, then. My forces will lead the attack'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Of course' and Kraiko answered: 'Good! Your legions are cowards'. Fryte gave Dread a questioning look, who demurred: 'It's so hard to get good help'.   
Kraiko said: 'I will go rest. We attack, in the morning'. He added to Nocturna: 'Bring food to my chamber, Slave' and left the room.   
Nocturna answered: 'It would be my… pleasure'. Fryte gave a cacophonous laugh, and Nocturna asked: 'What do you find so frightfully funny, Fryte?'.   
Fryte answered: 'Imagine! Kraiko's surprise;–– when Dread Wing betrays him!'.   
Nocturna asked Dread: 'Do we stab him, in the back?’.  
Dread Wing answered: 'No, Nocturna, that's much too devious. We stab him in the front;–– over and over!'.

The next morning, on Airlandis, Aaron told Zenith: 'You mustn't fail to recover all the information on the flight-recorder. This could be our first real chance to find a new home-place. Orac has installed a quantum chip in your helmet-computer. It should be of help'.   
Zenith answered: 'Thanks. Every little quantum bit helps'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Mother of Dragons;–– Zenith, look!'.  
Zenith looked; and on the horizon were the mutant lords on their dragons, with the Dark Dramen behind them and a swarm of screeching Gremwings in the rear.   
Said Zenith: 'It's Dread Wing and Kraiko. They've joined forces'.   
Joshua's voice rang over Airlandis: 'All dragonators: this is a Priority-One Battle in the making. All dragonators: proceed immediately to your Emergency-Launch Positions. Repeat: deploy directly to your E.L. Positions!'.   
Zenith, Summit, and Apex took to the sky on Riptor, Sky-Fury, and Blazewind. Peak added: 'Wing-Storm! I'll meet you at the end of the runway;–– and get ready to tear a hole in the Sky! Dragon Flyz, maximise!' and took to the air on mechanical wings.   
Joshua's voice rang over Airlandis: 'Repeat: deploy directly to your E.L. Positions! E.L. Positions!'. Dram, Zarkan, and Nora said: 'Flight is might!' and took to the air. Others seconded them: 'Flight is Right!' and did the same. The dragons arose from their eyries, and joined their riders.   
On the other side, Kraiko's dragon roared and shrieked. Said Kraiko himself: 'Watch me, Dread Wing. I will show you how to bring death to the Dragon Flyz'.   
Dread Wing answered: 'We will stand at the ready, Kraiko! Unless you call for my aid'.   
Kraiko was annoyed at this and said: 'I will not need your help, rebel!'.  
Said Zenith: 'O.K. Dragonators, we're outnumbered. So let's give them as many targets as possible. We'll hit them on all sides at once. Let's rip some air and take some name!' and raised his Windjammer. On the other side, Kraiko called: 'Dark Dramen: attack!'.  
So the battle began. Kraiko's dragon swerved from the army and swung his head into the foremost two dragonators, who fell. Zenith on Riptor shot down two Dark Dramen. Dram, on his own wings, felled three more. From behind him, another two said: 'We despise traitors, Dramen'; 'Prepare to taste the steel of our battle-claws!'.   
Dram answered: 'I–– am no traitor. I fight for what I believe; and I believe in Airlandis!'. With that, he tucked one of his attackers under his own leg; threw the other away; and beat the head of the first with his free hand, with a cry of 'Airlandis rules!'.   
Elsewhere, Summit atop Sky-Fury shot down more Dark Dramen, until another came behind him and severed his starboard mechanical wing, which lay unfolded. At this, Summit turned, and shot the offender. At their altitude, to fall from flight was death; so that was the end of the Dramen.   
Peak on Wing-Storm flew over Airlandis itself, into the battlefield, where Peak said: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!' and took to the air on mechanical wings. Before long, a Dramen severed both wings with its battle-claws, and Peak called: 'Wing-Storm! I can't stay up. Help!'; whereupon Wing-Storm turned, and caught him. Said Peak: 'That was a close one. I owe you one, Storm'.   
Elsewhere, the dragonators fought their way into the midst of the enemy, almost into the arms'-length of Kraiko himself.   
Zenith took to the air on mechanical wings, when a Dramen severed one. Summit called: 'Hang on, Zenith! Got you!' and pulled him onto Sky-Fury. Said he: 'Zenith, we're in big trouble. Our exo-wings are no match against those Dramen battle-claws. Most of our dragonators are down'.   
Said Zenith: 'We have to re-group. Get back to the city!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Here comes Riptor!', and Zenith leapt onto his own dragon's saddle. From this, he telephoned the others: 'Dragon Flyz, neutralize. Return to Airlandis. I repeat: break off and return to Airlandis!'.  
As they did so, Kraiko said: 'There's no-where you can fly; no-where you can hide. Your city will fall, and Kraiko will rise, to power!'.   
As they neared Airlandis, Team One beheld a small party of Dark Dramen immediately in pursuit. Said Zenith: 'Throw everything you've got at them! We have to cover our retreat!', and the Dragon Flyz blasted the Dramen into dust with their Windjammers. As the Dragon Flyz drew still nearer their city, Nocturna said from afar: 'If only we could destroy each-other for good'. Dread Wing added: 'Or for evil'.  
On Airlandis, the dragonators said: 'Got to get in before we're left out!', and their dragons carried them into the landing-bay, which shut behind them. Kraiko alighted, and said: 'Hm. Show them the power and the wrath of a Dramen warrior!'; whereupon his followers raised a battering-ram and struck the great door five times.   
The door had been built to withstand heat and radiation, not concussion; and Summit said, within: 'The bay-doors can't take that pounding. They're ready to cave! I don't know how much longer we can keep them out'. The number of blows became nine, and Zenith said: 'Unless, we invite them in'. The ram struck thrice more; and the door opened. Said Kraiko: 'What is this? Are they surrendering? Airlandis is mine!', and entered. He saw no-one, and stopped his followers and himself; for the Dragon Flyz had hidden against a bulkhead, and their dragons had gone to the aerie. For a moment, everyone waited in near-silence; then a loud buzz filled the air, and the Gremwings tore Kraiko's followers to pieces, or drove them away [as bees drive a bear]. Behind them came Nocturna on Nightmare, and shot streams of lava into their midst; thus the Dramen were scattered, and at least one fell. Kraiko fled into the landing-bay, which shut behind him. Said he: 'I need no-one to take what is mine'.   
Zenith answered: 'But you do need someone to tell you: you've been duped'. Kraiko turned to the door, and his battle-claws engraved long deep furrows upon it. Quoth he: 'Nöö! I am Kraiko, ruler of All I Survey! Dréëëad!'.  
Outside, Dread Wing answered: 'I bid you farewell, Kraiko: Former Ruler of Old Earth', and laughed. Said Nocturna: 'We lost Airlandis; but “one less Dramen” is a victory none the less'. Fryte too laughed, as he and the other mutants returned to Warnado, with only a few Gremwings left to them. 

The next day, the Dragon Flyz returned to Space Station Galileo on their dragons, with Kraiko in bonds behind one of them. Said Summit: 'We're taking you back home, Kraiko. All we want is the Black Box. The rest is all yours'. Once at the station, Zenith and Apex went within, while Peak and Summit stayed without: one on each side of Kraiko. Some of Kraiko's followers came from behind them to free their chief; but Peak put his Windjammer to Kraiko's head and said: 'It's nice to know you're so missed, Kraiko. Now tell them to back off! Or their leader's going to be missing for a long, long time!'.  
At the flight-recorder, Apex said: 'I think I've just about got it!', and Zenith's helm copied all she found. Thereafter, the Flyz and their dragons returned to Airlandis. One of Kraiko's followers started forward, and said: 'After them!'; but Kraiko ordered him: 'No! Let them go. They have kept their word'; for that, alone of all virtues, did Kraiko hold in respect.   
On Airlandis, Captain Bristol's record concluded: 'Despite our hardships, we have made a safe landing, and are now setting off for the place we call: the Oasis. According to our satellite pictures, there are still lakes; trees; even green grass there. To anyone finding this record: the coördinates are;––'  
but the record buzzed, and could not be heard. He repeated: 'The coördinates are;––'; but it buzzed again, and could not be heard. He finished: 'See you;–– there', and the record desisted.   
Said Aaron: 'Captain Bristol did not give up, and neither must we. One day we must leave this city-in-the-sky, and make our way back home'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be continued…


	4. The Amber King

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Apex makes a wondrous discovery, and Dread's meddling spoils it again…

Some weeks later, over the desolate canyons of Old Earth, Apex and Blazewind were pursued by Nocturna, Nightmare, and two Dark Dramen on their dragons. Said Nocturna: 'Around and around and around they go; where they stop, they'll meet their foe'.   
A little further, Nocturna shot streaks of lava after the fugitives, and Apex and Blazewind flew lower to escape. Said Nocturna to the Dramen: 'Keep her dancing with the plasma until her dragon is too weak to fly; then snare them without a fight!'.   
The Dramen obeyed, and Apex telephoned a message: 'Apex calling Dragon Flyz One! Can you hear me, Zenith? –I'm in way over my head here! Acknowledge!'.   
Zenith answered: 'Roger that, Apex, but we're totally engaged here!'; for all around him, Dark Dramen on their dragons shot streaks of lava at himself and Riptor, and at Peak and Summit on Wing-Storm and Sky-Fury. Zenith retaliated with his Windjammer, and called back to Apex: 'What's your position?'.   
She answered: 'I can't tell! Nocturna's driving me away from you. Blazewind's going to burn out any second!'. Her brothers and their dragons took formation, and Zenith called: 'Hang on, Apex; I'll try to break free and get to you!'.   
Fryte called: 'Don't let him escape!', and the Dark Dramen took to the air on their own wings in pursuit. Under their attack, Zenith could not reach Apex. Elsewhere, Apex herself shot down another Dramen (but did not kill him), and said to to her dragon: 'If we can make it to that Wind Pit, we can lose them in the tunnels and burn wing out of here! Blazewind: what do you think? Can you handle it?'. Blazewind trumpeted in return, and Apex answered: 'I promise you can have a rest, just as soon as we're clear of Nocturna'.   
Nocturna herself said: 'Dramen Defense Unit Two: the female Dragon Fly is heading toward the Wind Pits. You know what to do'.   
Apex said: 'We're almost there, Blaze! Hang on!'; but two Dramen interposed themselves between them and the Wind Pits. Two more came behind Apex and Blazewind, and Nocturna herself leapt on her own wings from Nightmare's back. Apex called: 'Zenith! Where are you?!'; and Summit, elsewhere, called: 'Zenith! Peak and I will cover you! You've got to break out of here and get to Apex!'.   
With that, he shot down a Dramen; but Zenith called back: 'I've got a better idea: target your jamming-power! I want full-saturation-fire! Let's show them a Whole New Way to Hurt!'.   
Peak called: 'Zenith, behind you!', just as Fryte on his dragon advanced on Zenith and Riptor. Our heroes eluded him, and Fryte and his dragon fell. Said Zenith: 'This is our chance; we're not going to get another!', and fired on the Dramen. Peak and Summit followed suit; the Dramen fled; and Zenith called: 'Double back and meet me at Zone E-1, as soon as you can!'. Nocturna, meanwhile, attacked Apex, who took to the air on her Exo-Wings. A Dramen fired on her; but she eluded him, and Nocturna said: 'Fool! Dread Wing wants the girl unharmed! He'll skin us all, if we fail his orders!', and scored his face with her claws. Apex rejoined Blazewind and rode him into a canyon to escape. Their enemies behind them startled Blazewind, and he flew low above the floor; but Nocturna and her henchmen fired on them from above, and Apex called: 'Pull up, Blaze! Pull up!', but too late; for when Blazewind did so, he slid upon the floor, and tipped Apex from the saddle. With a groan, a roar, and a moan, Blazewind came to a halt against a great stone, and draped himself upon it; and Apex fell senseless, with her head unhelmed. Nocturna and Nightmare hovered over them; but Apex rose to her knees and called: 'Blazewind: are you all right?'. The dragon roared and righted himself; and when Nocturna's Dramen alighted on the canyon's floor, stood over Apex with bared teeth and spread wings, to protect her. Nocturna too alighted, and said: 'Your tedious game of “Fly-and-Seek” is over, Little Girl!'; Blazewind roared defiance, and Nocturna and her Dramen advanced on him and Apex.   
Elsewhere, Apex's brothers and their dragons flew in search of her and Blazewind, over a landscape of stone columns surrounded by lava. Suddenly, Peak said: 'Listen!'. In the canyon, Blazewind roared, and so too did the hostile dragons.   
Nocturna asked: 'What's the matter with them?'. A Dramen answered: 'Don't know! Some thing frightens them!'.   
Apex closed her eyes and concentrated; and though she did not speak, her mind asked: 'What is it, Blazewind? “They're coming”? What do you mean: “they're coming”? Who's coming?’.  
Blazewind tilted his head skyward, for an answer; and a great flight of dragons flew overhead. Said Nocturna: 'Wild Dragons!'.   
To Peak and Summit, Zenith said: 'Let's hightail it, Flyz. Whatever that is, it's headed straight for Apex!', and the team flew faster.   
To Apex, Blazewind thought: 'Get on my back', and Apex asked: '“Get on your back”? Why? I don't understand!'.   
Blazewind roared his answer, and launched himself, and Apex said: 'I get it, Blaze! We'll lose Nocturna in the flight! I'm with you!', and flew on her Exo-Wings after him. Nocturna said: 'What?! –The Dragon Fly! She's escaping! After her, you fools, before it's too late!', and she and the Dramen remounted their own dragons. Apex's helm remained behind.   
True to Blazewind's word, he and Apex hid among the Wild Dragons, and Nocturna and the Dramen lost them. When Nocturna fired on Apex, her second shot struck a Wild Dragon instead, and one of its fellow-fliers knocked her out of the air. Meanwhile, Peak found Apex's helm and said: 'I hope we're not too late!'. Elsewhere, the leader of the Wild Dragons alighted on a natural wall of stone, and called his flight to order. Blazewind alighted on a spire nearby, and Apex telephoned Airlandis: 'Skywatch, this is Apex! Come in, Skywatch; do you read me?!'; but there was no answer.   
In Warnado, Dread Wing scolded Nocturna: 'What I wanted, was for you to capture Apex!'. Nocturna answered: 'I had a perfect plan: Divide and Conquer! Separate her from the others, and hunt her until she collapsed in exhaustion!'.   
Dread Wing said: 'The only thing “exhausted”, Nocturna, are your Pathetic Excuses, and your never-less-than-spectacular Failures! She's not a Mutant; she's not even a Man: she's a Girl! Weak and Helpless!'.   
Nocturna, at this, seized Dread Wing and answered: 'Be careful where you tread, Dread! This girl is neither weak, nor helpless! Why do you want her so badly?'.   
Dread Wing said: 'Because, she can communicate with Dragons: that's why; and if she can speak to them, she can also control them. Who controls the Dragons, controls the Ground and the Air!', and threw Nocturna to the floor, where she answered: 'You'll live to regret calling women “weak”, Dread. One day, it will be you who will bow to me!'.   
Dread Wing said: 'I suggest: you get out of here, and get that Dragon Fly!', and Nocturna flew from his Throne Room.   
Among the Wild Dragons, Apex said: 'Blazewind, look! –Baby dragons! That's why the Wild Dragons were so enraged at Nocturna for firing her lava-gun! They were protecting their young!'.   
Even as she spoke, the chief dragon's eldest son flamed upon a spire of rock, and the rock changed entirely into crystal, of the sort that kept Airlandis aloft. Apex flew on her Exo-Wings to inspect it, and said: 'I don't believe it: it transformed into Amber! That's incredible. Did you see that, Blaze? That dragon-pup can actually make Amber Crystals! Which one is the Father? I've got to communicate with him!'. To the chief dragon, she said: 'Don't be alarmed. I come in peace. My name is Apex, and my dragon-partner is Blazewind. Your son can change ordinary stone into Amber Crystals. Crystal is the most precious thing for us humans. Without it, our city could not stay aloft'.   
The chief answered: 'Take it, as a token'.   
Apex replied: 'This is far more than a token! Thank you! Is there anything I can do for you? For your flight?'.   
The chief roared his answer, and Apex said: 'You need food? Perhaps, then, we can work together: my people will bring food from our supplies; in return, you give us the Amber Crystals your son creates'.   
Elsewhere, her brothers and their dragons flew over a desolate jungle, toward the very rock on which the Wild Dragons rested; and Blazewind took a crystal in his claws and joined them. Zenith asked: 'Apex, are you all right?'.   
She answered: '100 per cent.'.   
Zenith asked: 'Is everything secure?', and his sister answered: 'Better than that. What if I were to tell you these Wild Dragons may be worth their weight in Amber?'.   
Said Peak: 'What are you talking about, Sis? (I think hanging out with these dragons has fried her brain)'; but even he thought otherwise on Airlandis, when Apex presented her discovery to the Council. As Apex explained: 'The infant must be some kind of genetic mutation. But that's not important right now. What is important, is that the dragon-pup can generate Amber, seemingly at any time, in any quantity!'.   
Aaron her father asked: 'And for this gift;–– this miracle;–– all we have to do, is provide them with food?'.   
Apex answered: 'Yes. Can we provide enough food to feed the entire colony?'.   
Orac said: 'We can always grow more food. We can't grow new Amber! The question is: can the dragons be trusted?'.   
Zenith answered: 'I'd trust a dragon with my life, and the lives of everyone on Airlandis. We're going to have to find a secure place for them: I suggest a full squad of dragonators, on full guard at all times around the Wild Dragons'.   
His father answered: 'Very well! But I want you four in charge of transporting the Amber to Airlandis'.   
Zenith telephoned: 'Deploy Night Squadron as soon as possible. I want those Wild Dragons protected by daybreak'. This was done; but Nocturna saw them go, and said: 'Now why would the dragonators risk leaving Airlandis at night? –That could be dangerous: you'll never know what you'd run into, in the dark'.   
Before long, the Night Squadron had reached the Wild Dragons' aerie, and flown into a crevice, where one telephoned Zenith: 'This is Dragon Flyz Team 6 reporting: everything seems clear'.   
Zenith answered: 'Roger that. Now find yourselves a good defensive position in case we have to hold the line against Dread Wing'. The Wild Dragons roared in welcome, and Team 6 fed them.   
Zenith ordered two more: 'Amod, Dram: you two map some quick-escape routes. Take position in the caves below and stay out of sight!'. Amod and Dram obeyed. Apex, meanwhile, coddled and caressed the great chief dragon; and his son gratified Team 1 with a mass of Amber Crystal, as large as three men. Said Zenith: 'Incredible! Let's burn wing and get this load to Airlandis'.   
Said Peak: 'I'm not sure that's a good idea, to make Orac this happy; he might stop being grumpy-all-the-time!'.   
Summit answered: 'Well, he's going to have to change his attitude, because he has no-more worries about altitude!'. With that, Team 1 rode their dragons back to Airlandis, with a load each of the crystal. Said the leader of Team 6: 'We're hunkered down good and tight; Dread Wing will never find us here!'.   
Said Nocturna to herself, behind them: 'Maybe not; but I certainly will!'.   
The second man of Team 6 added: 'For once, it feels good to be standing on firm ground'; but just as he said it, Nocturna seized them both and said: 'If you don't tell me what's going on, this instant, I'll bury you in that Firm Ground!'. Behind her flapped Dread Wing's 'Flying Eye' (a small grey animal on wings, with a single large black eye), and flew back to Dread to report its discovery. Dread Wing immediately sent his Dramen to climb the aerie, and they attacked Team 6 with their lava-launchers. The dragonators retaliated with their Windjammers, and called warnings among themselves: 'Dark Dramen attacking!'. The Dramen entered the aerie, and a dragonator telephoned: 'E.M.T. to Skywatch! Priority Alert! We're under attack!'.   
Said Nocturna: 'Capture the Amber Dragon', and Dread himself alighted on the aerie. As the fight grew fierce with streaks of lava and blasts of force, the 'Amber Dragon' himself (not the chief, but his son) was driven into the open, where Dread wrapped him in a bolas. When Apex followed, Dread Wing held the child aloft and said: 'Some day, Dragon Flyz, you will learn that no-one can stop me! Not even you! The dragon is mine! The Sky;–– is mine!'.   
Apex did not speak, but her mind called to the child: 'Use your power! Free yourself!', and the dragon-cub flamed upon a nearby Dark Dramen, who incontinently changed into a crystalline statue. Said Dread Wing: 'It's true! The dragon-pup can transform stone into Amber!'. Apex cried out in horror (for this revelation had been her mistake); and when Dread threw the child down, Apex caught him. Quoth she: 'Dragon Flyz, maximize!' and flew atop the aerie.   
Dread Wing called: 'Nocturna! Stop them!', and Nocturna answered: 'Why, Dread! It looks to me you've been beaten by a Girl! –And a baby!', and laughed in her consort's very teeth, who said: 'O;–– shut up, Nocturna!', and descended. To the Dramen, Nocturna said: 'Keep firing! Drive them back!'.   
Dram telephoned Aaron: 'Dram to Airlandis! Dread Wing is attacking! We request immediate back-up support!'.   
Aaron answered: 'Acknowledged, Dram! I'm sending you every remaining dragonator! But I want some time. Hang tough, Dram! Do what you can, my friend!'.   
As Team 1 returned to the aerie, Peak called to Apex, and Summit added: 'She's got the pup!', while the pup himself flamed over Apex's shoulder at Dread Wing, who came close behind them. Blackheart forced them both to the ground. Said Dread Wing: 'The Little Miracle Dragon and the Dragon Fly I was trying so hard to capture: with your brain, and his flame, I'll be unstoppable!'.   
Apex answered: 'I will never rest, until this dragon is free, Dread’.  
Dread Wing answered: 'I don't want you to rest, Apex; on the contrary, I want your mind working overtime! Together, you and I will control all dragondom!'. The 'miracle-dragon' roared; and in the battle, not far away, his sire answered, and came to his rescue. Nocturna tried to follow, but Zenith, Peak, and Summit descended on their dragons' backs, with a cry of 'Hey Nocturna! Special delivery!', and a salvo of Windjammer fire. Peak's shot stunned her, and his brothers felled the Dark Dramen; and the other dragonators cheered, and rejoined the fight. The Dramen fled; but most were cornered by the Wild Dragons, and the great chief dragon called challenges at Blackheart, who challenged him in return. They were equal in size and strength, and Blackheart's indolent lifestyle had made him slow. Dread Wing spread his own wings and flew, and charged the chief; but the great dragon flamed at him, and the flame threw him to the ground (though it did not transmute him to Amber).   
Apex freed the pup, and Dread Wing shouted: 'Destroy them, Blackheart; obliterate them! Tear them to pieces!'. Blackheart tried to obey; but the wild chief rose against him, and threw him to the ground. On the roof-top, Dread Wing fumed; and in the aerie, Nocturna and her Dramen were surrounded by dragons and dragonators: all on the wing, and all ready to destroy her at the slightest provocation. She fled, and the three surviving Dramen fled with her. When they had gone, Peak said: 'Where's Apex? I can't see her anywhere!'. On the roof, the chief dragon scolded Dread Wing, while Apex and the pup watched from a short distance. Dread Wing retreated; and Apex said to the Dragon Chief: 'I'm very sorry Dread Wing kidnapped your son. The next time, we'll be ready. It wasn't our fault! We of Airlandis do not long for battle; only peace!', but the dragon chief departed, and his son and all the colony with him. Apex called: 'We fight only to survive! If you would just give us a second chance;––'; but the dragon chief flew away, and his son and all the colony followed suit. The pup went last, with a call of farewell, and Apex begged him: 'Please; don't go!'; but to no avail.   
Zenith telephoned her: 'Apex, are you all right?', and she did not answer at first, but whispered after the pup: 'Good-bye, Little Prince. Perhaps when you grow up, and you are king, we'll have that chance'. Her brothers rejoined her, with all their four dragons, and all the Airlandians rode back to their city.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nocturna's absurd reaction to Dread's opinion of Apex, makes her look foolish; and because she's the villain, this suits us viewers just fine.


	5. Crystal Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Gangrene's latest discovery comes perhaps nearest of Dread's evil plans, to lowering Airlandis for ever…

Worse trouble arose in the next few months, when Gangrene invited Dread Wing to a cave outside Warnado, to show him a new discovery. Quoth he: 'This way, master!', and his master answered: 'This better be good, Gangrene', who said: '“All good things come to those who wait”. Patience, my Prince of Darkness!', and led the way, with a lantern. Out of sight of the cave's entrance, they came upon stone columns nearly covered, except at the extremities, by the material they sought.   
Said Gangrene: 'They may look like ordinary crystals; but when I expose them to light, the material spreads, like fire: a Crystal Fire, enveloping everything in its path!'.   
Dread Wing answered: 'Stop, you fool! It's headed straight for us!', and Gangrene stopped. Immediately, the Crystal Fire ceased to grow, and Dread Wing said: 'Excellent, Gangrene! This shall give the Dragon Flyz my farewell gift! One that will keep on giving, and giving, and giving!'.  
Soon afterward, Dragon Flyz Team One descended through the Wind Pits, in search of fresh crystals for Airlandis. [It might be added there, that the Wind Pits were the only safe way down, and that anyone who entered the Warp Winds between Airlandis and Earth, was sure to die before it saw the far side]. When Gangrene saw them, he said: 'Here they come: the soon-to-be Fire Flies; sealed in Amber for all eternity, like the primordial insects of old!'.   
Dread Wing asked: 'What would keep our fire safely doused, until their return to the city?', and Gangrene answered: 'The night! Darkness will contain it; the light of day will unleash its fury! Only when the Sun rises on Airlandis, will the fire rage, unstoppable!'.   
Dread Wing said: 'Crystal Fire will become a Crystal Inferno', and laid the false crystals on the edge of the lava-streams. Sky-Fury saw them, and bellowed, and Summit said: 'We've got a pile of Amber Crystals washed up on shore, just waiting for us!'.   
Peak added: 'We won't even get our toes wet! This job's getting just a little too boring'. The dragons roared and descended; snatched the Crystal Fire in their paws; and bore it to Airlandis, while Dread and Gangrene watched them from below. On Airlandis, Orac emptied the reactors of their spent crystals, and installed the pretended replacements. When Apex, Summit, and Peak brought more, Orac answered: 'There's no more room at the Crystal Inn, Apex! Store those in the Surplus Bin!', and this was soon done.   
At dawn of the next day, Orac returned to the reactors, to inspect the new Crystals; but started in shock; for the Crystal Fire had overgrown the reactors, and spread further even as he watched. Quoth he: 'What in dragondom;––?!', but could not finish his question, for the strange reaction quickly encased him. Elsewhere, two technicians opened the Surplus Bin, and met the same injustice. Skywatch sent a message: 'Dragon Flyz One: come in, Dragon Flyz One! Something is wrong with our Crystal Reactors: my turbine is off line! I advise you to check out the situation!'.   
Zenith answered: 'Affirmative, Skywatch: we have it covered', and went to investigate. A little later, he and his team strode down the proper corridor, with their Windjammers drawn. Apex called around a bend: 'Anybody there?'.   
Said Peak: 'What's that noise?!', and the four of them turned the bend and knelt at the ready. A moment later, they rose and continued; and the Crystal Fire came at them around the next bend. Summit called: 'Watch out!', and the team retreated.   
Zenith called: 'Head for the stairs!', and they did this.   
On the stairs, Peak asked of Apex: 'What is it, Sis?', and she answered: 'I don't know; but it's right behind us!'.   
Summit called: 'Let's move out! Get to Skywatch; we're right behind you!'. All four gathered on the nearest external floor; and with the usual cry of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', took to the sky on their Exo-Wings. Meanwhile the Crystal Fire overspread Airlandis, until scarcely a building remained untainted. Quoth Summit: 'Looks like we're the only ones who got out'. Below them, the citizens ran hap-hazard on every street, bridge, and corridor, while the horrible stuff covered everything in sight. The Sentinels at the Dragons' aerie roared in distress; then flew for their lives, while the Crystal Fire filled the aerie itself.   
In a tower still free, Aaron said to his children: 'It's some kind of mutant bacterium. I've never seen anything like it before'.   
Apex said: 'It's spreading everywhere', and Aaron said: 'There's got to be a way to stop that thing!'.   
Dread Wing himself came to Airlandis, upon Blackheart, with Fryte and Nocturna behind him, and announced: 'Humans of Airlandis! As you have already witnessed the handiwork of my Crystal Fire, I have come: not to praise you, but to bury you!'.   
Zenith answered: 'Dread Wing. I should have known this was his doing!'.   
Said Nocturna: 'Let's kill them and get it over with!', but Dread Wing said: 'No, Nocturna; I would treat Airlandis as if it had always been my own', and led the others away.   
Said Aaron: 'The turbines that hold Airlandis up, won't last much longer under the excess weight. Airlandis is going to fall, like a rock. You have to try as many means as possible, to hold it up. Meanwhile I'll go back to my lab, in search of a solution'.   
Peak answered: 'You can count on us, Father', and he and the others went on patrol, back-to-back.   
As they looked about, Peak said: 'Ah! Here it comes!'.   
Zenith ordered: 'Put your weapons on max.! Concentrate the blasts on a single target! Ready on my signal: fire!'. The four Windjammers fired, and a four-fold beam smote the Crystal Fire into pieces.   
Peak said: 'That bought us some time!', and Summit answered: 'Yeah: about a second-and-a-half!'; for even as he spoke, the mass re-assembled itself, and surrounded our heroes.   
Said Summit: 'There's no place to go, but up!' and took to the air on his exo-wings. Apex called after him: 'Summit; watch out!', as another flare expanded in his direction. Zenith opened a trap-door, and led the others into a passage under the floor, where workers usually went to repair the machines that circulated energy through Airlandis. Summit came last, and the Crystal Fire followed him. Around a bend, they came face-to-face with more of the invader; and through every subordinate passage, came still more. A patch of the substance landed on Summit, and Peak cried: 'Hold still!' and shot it off. Summit sat down suddenly, and said: 'Nice shooting, Peak', who answered: 'I always said I was going to knock that chip off your shoulder'.   
They ran; but the Crystal Fire grew after them, and all four Dragon Flyz stood side-by-side and fired upon it, to no avail. Said Apex: 'It's gaining on us! We're trapped!'. A stray shot broke a lamp on the walls, and Peak said: 'Do you see that?! It's slowing down!'.   
Zenith said: 'It needs the light. Shoot them all!'. The Dragon Flyz shot every nearby lamp until the Crystal Fire halted where it stood; and Zenith telephoned: 'Come in, Skywatch. I need you to cut off all light-sources. I'll explain later'. Immediately, the remaining lamps were darkened, and Zenith ordered his team: 'Switch to Dragon-Night-Fight Mode'; whereupon everyone lowered night-vision lenses upon their own eyes. Said he: 'Let's go; Father needs us!', and they left the tunnel on their exo-wings.   
In the dragons' eyrie, Riptor bellowed to his own team, and broke down one of the smaller doors, through which he and they immediately flew. All over Airlandis, the Crystal Fire had covered most of the roads and buildings, and hung in gigantic pink cords from every tower. Everyone caught in it, was trapped alive: able to breathe, but unable to move. In his laboratory, Aaron studied a sample of the invader, under his microscope, and typed his observations into a small computer. Outside, a few dragonators fired blast after blast at the Crystal Fire, which surrounded them. Said Summit: 'If we keep it up 'til nightfall, maybe we have a chance'; but a lava-launcher's shot struck the tower beside them, and Zenith answered: 'I think we just lost that chance'. Gremwings came screeching overhead, and Dread Wing, on Blackheart, was close behind them, with Nocturna on Nightmare and Fryte on his dragon 'Skunk'.   
Said Zenith to the other dragonators: 'Hold them as long as we've got, to give Aaron more time!'. He added, to his team: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', and all four took to the air on exo-wings. Their four dragons rose to meet them, and the Flyz settled into the saddles on their backs. Over the city they went, to attack Dread's army, and the great bay-doors shut fast behind them. Dread called back: 'Don't you mean: “Dragon Flyz, crystallize”?', and laughed.   
The Gremwings swarmed upon Apex, and she fought back. Nocturna fired her lava-launcher on Summit and Sky-Fury, who whirled and writhed in the air to elude the shots. At length Sky-Fury tripled her altitude, swept upon Nocturna, and hurled the mutant from her saddle; whereupon Nocturna sprouted wings and flew. Dread himself attacked Peak and Wing-Storm, and the Gremwings tipped Peak from his saddle; whereupon he said: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!' and took to the air on his exo-wings, with the Gremwings in pursuit. Zenith fired his Windjammer on these; and Fryte, behind him, sprouted wings and flew, and attacked Zenith on Riptor's back. They fought a single round, and Zenith knocked Fryte off; and Fryte fell backward onto an Airlandian roof. The Crystal Fire reached for him, and he spead his wings and flew, to his own dragon.  
On the floor, the other dragonators fired faster than ever on the Crystal Fire; but it drew ever nearer them. In the laboratory, Aaron studied rapidly, and finally said: 'There's nothing on this in the ancient books'. At that moment, the Crystal Fire swept into his laboratory, and tipped over a lamp-post. Spare electricity flashed at the lamp-post's broken tip, and the Crystal Fire died wherever the electricity touched it. Said Aaron: 'Electric shock breaks down the molecular structure of the crystals'. Zenith flew into the laboratory to rescue him; but the Crystal Fire overtook Aaron before he could tell Zenith of his discovery. Horrified, Zenith fled.   
Outside, Nocturna on Nightmare attacked Apex and Blazewind. A few shots stung Blazewind's flanks, and Nocturna laughed; but Apex and Blazewind flew on two sides, and Apex disarmed Nocturna, while Blazewind closed his jaws upon the throat of Nightmare. With that done, Apex carried Nocturna from her seat, and threw her down. Two Gremwings seized Peak by the arms, and Fryte trained his lava-launcher upon him; but Peak kicked it into the Crystal Fire below, and scoffed: 'Butterfingers!'. Fryte threw a punch at him, but hit one of the Gremwings instead. Said Peak: 'Missed me!'. Fryte threw a punch at him, but hit the other Gremwing instead, and Peak said: 'Missed me again! One more strike, and you're out!' and escaped on his exo-wings. Dread Wing on Blackheart pursued Summit and Sky-Fury over the city, and shot lava after them; but Summit called: 'Let's split!', and Blackheart was forced to take a perpendicular course to evade collision with a tower, while Summit and Fury circled around and behind him. Some Gremwings attacked Summit, and he escaped them behind another set of buildings, but found himself confronted by Crystal Fire, and retreated. Three more Gremwings attacked Riptor; but he killed two, and Zenith shot the third and resumed his seat on the dragon's back. To Apex he said (who now rode Blazewind, beside them): 'Father's trapped. The Crystal got him before I could get to him! He was trying to tell me something'.   
Apex answered: 'Really? What?'.   
Zenith replied: 'I'm not sure'. With a roar, Blackheart flew into the midst of Airlandis, and the Crystal Fire grew even higher. Blackheart was confronted with a wall of the invader, and escaped by a scale's breadth. The Gremwings swept upon Airlandis, and they too were caught. Over his shoulder, Dread Wing called: 'Drive it back, Blackheart! A lava-blast! Drive it back!', and Blackheart obeyed. Said Dread Wing: 'Front and center. Gangrene!!!'.   
Gangrene rode beside Dread Wing on his own dragon, and said: 'Yes?'.   
Dread answered: 'My army is being destroyed, you idiot! Stop this thing from growing!'.   
Said Gangrene: 'Of course, Master! Just as soon as the Sun sets!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'We haven't got time for that! Stop it now!'.   
Said Gangrene: 'I can't! I don't know how! We could wait for an Eclipse'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Maybe you should hope I don't eclipse your head from your shoulders!'. At that moment, the Dragon Flyz fired on them, and both mutants retreated. Said Dread Wing: 'Down comes Airlandis, crystals and all! Gremwings! Back to Warnado!'.   
Weighed beyond its strength, Airlandis began to fall, and Summit called: 'That's it for the turbines!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'If I can't have Airlandis, no one shall! Plunge to your everlasting death, Dragon Flyz!'.   
Said Zenith: 'This is it: we've failed. Airlandis, is doomed'; but even as it sank into the Warp Winds, the immense bolts of lightning, which crackled unceasingly throughout the clouds, flashed upon Airlandis, and shattered a swath of Crystal Fire. Now Zenith rode into the city, and Riptor tore rods from the roof-tops and set them into the highest edifice in the city, which drew the lightning into every street and chamber. One bolt struck Zenith and shook the lightning-rod from his hands; but his brothers and sister had rods of their own, and sank them into the proper places. Lightning flashed and curled around every building, and the Crystal Fire was entirely destroyed. People lived again; but they were nearly blown from Airlandis by the Warp Winds, until Orac the engineer re-activated the city's motors, and raised it to its proper altitude. Aaron woke in his laboratory, and floated to a window. The Dragon Flyz swept upon the runway, dismounted from their dragons, and called: 'Airlandis lives!'.   
Aaron answered: 'At least, for another day'. Team One took a victory-flight, and flew in circles for pure joy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any ideas for the name of Gangrene's steed? It appears nowhere else, but it ought to have a name in the story.


	6. The Defector

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Dread Wing's day-dream nearly comes true, and the name of Gangrene echoes once more through Warnado…

Some months later, in Warnado, Dread Wing called upon his scientist, as follows: 'Gangrene!!! Have you finally replicated the secret of the Amber?'.   
Gangrene answered: 'Yes, my Lord Master; yes! This Crystal Reactor, my invention, will out-do those of Airlandis!'.   
Dread came into the laboratory, and Gangrene displayed his machine and fuelled it with two shards of Amber. Dread Wing told him: 'The time for results, is now!'. Gangrene activated the machine, and said: 'Of course, it still needs a few minor adjustments: some small refinements. I really don't think;––', but Dread interrupted him: 'Stop thinking and boost the power!'.   
Gangrene answered: 'Yes, yes; as you wish!', and obeyed. The reactor crackled with lightning, and both villains retreated. Said Gangrene: 'Flee, my Lord! It's going to explode! Fly for your life!', and threw himself aside, just as the reactor burst.   
From the wreckage emerged Dread Wing, and said: 'Gangrene! Your miserable failures must end, or I will end your miserable life!', and flew away in disgust.   
Outside, and a little later, Dragon Flyz Team One were on their dragons above Old Earth, in search of Amber. Said Zenith: 'Dragon Flyz! Set formation for Wind Pit Traverse!'; and Riptor led the other dragons through the Pit, onto the surface below. Fryte reported to Dread Wing: 'Dread! Gangrene has escaped Warnado!'.   
Dread answered: 'He can't out-run me, Fryte; he can't out-run the Gremwings, or his fate', and Fryte went to give the necessary orders.   
Outside, Zenith on Riptor called to the others: 'Crystal Lake, dead ahead!', and the dragons snatched a crystal each, and returned to the sky with a roar. A swarm of Gremwings came behind them, and Zenith called: 'Gremwings! Cut and dive!'; whereupon the dragons turned their formation around and their riders readied their Windjammers. Zenith called: 'Fire at close range!'; but the swarm halved itself around our heroes, and Peak called: ‘Hey! Those Gremwings aren't after us! They're after someone else!', and pointed to Gangrene, who ran for his life across the barren ground.   
Zenith answered: 'Anyone who runs from Gremwings, deserves a helping wing!', and led his team to the rescue. Riptor seized Gangrene in his claws, and Zenith recognized him; but they did not let him fall. The Gremwings followed them still, and Fryte commanded them from behind; but Zenith pulled Gangrene onto Riptor's back, behind himself, and Gangrene said: 'If Dread Wing gets his claws on me, he'll throw me to the lava-beasts!'.   
Zenith answered: 'Don't worry. Wind-slammer, drop now!', and the Dragon Flyz dropped explosives into the lava-pool beneath them. A great spout of lava rose from the pool, and all the Gremwings were dissolved in it. Fryte called: 'Stand your ground, Gangrene! There is no escape! You, and your human allies, are mine!', and rose from Skunk's back on his own wings. Zenith on his exo-wings faced Fryte on one side; and Peak, on his own exo-wings, kicked Fryte from the air, whereupon Zenith resumed his seat on Riptor, signalled to Peak, and ordered Gangrene: 'Hold on tight'. More Gremwings filled the sky, and Gangrene called: 'They're coming back!'; but Zenith scattered the horde with a single blast, and the Dragon Flyz rode into a cave-system under a mountain, and left the Gremwings there. The dragons and their riders emerged from the mountain's height unpursued, and Apex called: 'We did it! We're home free!'. Zenith ordered: 'Dragon Flyz, hit the skies!', and the team returned, with their refugee, to Airlandis.  
On Airlandis, Gangrene faced the Council. Said Joshua: 'On behalf of the Council of Airlandis, we must deny sanctuary to this low-born! To allow one of Dread Wing's lieutenants within our city, is a tremendous risk!'.   
Orac answered: 'Hold on, Josh.! I don't think you see what we have, here! This is Dread's chief technician! This could be our Golden Opportunity to find out what makes Warnado tick, from the clockmaker, himself!'.   
Dragonator Zarkan said: 'It's a plot! This low-born is here to sabotage the city!'.   
Aaron asked: 'Is what Zarkan says, true, Gangrene? Is your escape from below, a plot to destroy Airlandis?'.   
Gangrene answered: 'Just because I'm from the ground, should not give you grounds for suspicion. I tried to please Dread Wing, but the equipment he gave me was out-dated! I had no choice, but to flee. Now Airlandis is the only place, where I can be safe! I may be a “low-born”, but I am a Scientist; but I ask only for a safe haven in your city, and to prove my worth to you! Knowledge is Power, and what I know, is very powerful'.   
Said Orac: 'I say: the more trained technicians we have working for Airlandis, high-born or low-born, the better!'.   
Said Aaron: 'The potential benefits seem to outweigh the risks'.   
Said Zenith: 'This may be the closest we'll get inside Warnado, and inside Dread's head'.   
Said Joshua: 'I feel we are making a grave error. But if the Voice of the Council be as one, Gangrene stays. But I implore: that Zenith supervise this low-born at all times!'.   
Zenith, Aaron, and Zarkan nodded assent, and Joshua asked: 'What is the Voice of the Council?'. Said everyone: 'It is One!', and Gangrene stayed.  
A little later, Zenith and Orac showed Gangrene the Crystal Reactor. Said Gangrene: 'It's magnificent! I've never seen anything like it! –But what is that, on the side?'.   
Orac answered: 'That's a back-up reactor. I can replace a defective unit with it, in a matter of seconds!'. Said Gangrene: 'Intriguing'.   
Said Orac: 'And here we have three Crystal Reactors on line. 1500 veloci-whirls per second from each, maintain zero-gravity, and keep the entire city, aloft'. Gangrene caressed the reactors, and Zenith and Orac became suspicious; then Gangrene, with a small Windjammer of his own, cracked one of the Crystals, and said: 'What's this? One of your Crystals seems to be damaged'.   
Said Zenith: 'Orac, power down!', and Orac did so and said: 'Good work, Gangrene! Without your help, that crystal could have fractured the others!'. Two technicians installed a new Crystal, and removed the old. Said Gangrene to himself: 'The Secret of the Ambers, is no longer Secret!', and laughed. When Orac and Zenith had their backs to him, he hastened to a window, and wrote a letter to Dread Wing, which he encased in a cylinder strong and small enough to withstand the Warp Winds, and dropped into the murk for Dread to find.   
Said Zenith: 'Do you think something's up, Orac?', who answered: 'That cracked crystal could have been a co-incidence. Something's going down, and it would have been us if not for our new friend!'.   
Said Zenith: 'But if it wasn't, here's what we should do', and whispered a plan.   
They found Gangrene at the window, and he said: 'Ah! There you are. I was just admiring the view;–– the light;–– something we don't often experience, down below. And speaking of light, perhaps you'd like me to shed some on Dread's plasma-blasters?'. With that, he led Orac aside, and Zenith looked through the window; but found no sign of treachery.  
On Old Earth, a Gremwing caught the message, and bore it to Dread Wing. To Nocturna, Dread Wing said: 'Gangrene's lies have achieved the desired effect. Our most loyal technician has discovered that which we desire'.   
Nocturna supplied the name: 'The Secret of the Amber', and Dread answered: 'Better than that! A portable reactor, ripe for the picking! A crucible of Warnado's resurrection! At moonrise, we ride!', and left the throne-room.   
That night, on Airlandis, Gangrene was abed, but awake. At a late hour, he listened to the Skywatch outside his door, when one said: 'Is the low-born asleep?', and the other answered: 'I haven't heard a sound from the Guy on the ground'. At that, Gangrene poured a corrosive onto the far wall; and when it dissolved the metal, escaped through the opening it made. Zenith came to the door, and told the Skywatch: 'At ease. I just wanted to see if our guest needed anything before retiring'. He knocked on the door; and when Gangrene did not answer, opened it and found the chamber unoccupied, except by the vapours of the corrosive. Immediately he telephoned: 'Alert Skywatch! D-2 Alert! Gangrene has escaped from his quarters!'.   
Skywatch searched the neighborhood, but found no Gangrene, and Councillor Joshua said: 'Zenith! You stand guilty of Gross Negligence! The safety of the entire city has been compromised! Dragonator, you are hereby exempt from your duties. Son of Aaron or not, you are a Traitor, by any name! I place you under arrest, until the Council next convenes!'. At once, the Skywatch escorted Zenith into prison.   
Elsewhere, Gangrene crept into the engine-rooms, and Dread Wing on Blackheart rode into Airlandis, to capture the portable reactor. Gangrene waved a light at them, and Dread Wing said: 'Ah; Gangrene has lit the Lamp of Welcome! It would be ungracious to keep him waiting!'. Two of Skywatch saw Gangrene through the open door, and said: 'There he is! Get him!'; but Dread on Blackheart drove them into retreat with his plasma-blaster. Gremwings flew into the streets, and Zarkan called: 'Dragonators: defend your city!', and they obeyed. The great doors shut, and the dragonators fired Windjammers on any Gremwing caught within. Said Zarkan: 'That's it, dragonators! Drive them back!', and they shot the Gremwings to pieces. In the Control Tower, Orac pulled a lever, and the engine-rooms withdrew into the superstructure; but Gangrene whispered to Dread: 'This way: through here!', and Dread and Nocturna followed his directions into the next chamber.   
On their exo-wings, Peak said: 'Come on, Summit! Whatever Apex wants, will have to wait!'; but Summit told Apex 'We're on our way!' and informed Peak: 'Josh has just tossed Zenith in jail for Gross Negligence!'.   
Peak laughed and answered: 'Are you kidding?!'. Apex fastened a grappling-iron to the bars of Zenith's prison window, and said: 'Sorry to interrupt your vacation, but we need you back on the job! Take it away!'; and Wing-Storm, with the iron tethered to himself, pulled the window open. Zenith took to the air on his exo-wings, and said: 'We've got to get to the Reactor Room'.   
In that same room, Orac and his technicians were at work on the Portable Reactor, when Dread, Nocturna, and Gangrene took it from them. Orac raised a token resistance; but Dread Wing threw him aside. From against the wall, Orac called: 'Gangrene! What are you doing? I thought;––', but Gangrene answered: 'You thought I would betray my own kind for you, and a breath of fresh air? Fools! With the power of the Crystals harnessed, Warnado will rule the Skies, and Dread will rise to Power over All!'.   
Outside the Reactor Room, Apex said: 'I hope we're not too late'; but the Reactor Room emerged from the superstructure, and Fryte on Skunk and a Dark Dramen on his own dragon rose with a net, to carry the Portable Reactor to Warnado. Dread Wing and Nocturna bundled the Reactor into the net, and Dread added to Gangrene: 'And now, my loyal servant, the honor of initiating the first strike against Airlandis, is yours!'.   
Gangrene answered: 'With pleasure', and his hand was full of electricity.   
Orac called: 'Gangrene, no!', and Team One, with a cry of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', stunned Gangrene with their Windjammers.   
Nocturna spread her wings and flew, but Dread Wing said: 'Welcome to the beginning of your end, Dragon Flyz!', and hurled a box at them. With that, he lifted the unconscious Gangrene and flew away himself. Said Zenith: 'Dragon Flyz, let's hit the Skies!', and the team on their dragons pursued Dread's minions. Blackheart flamed upon them, they scattered; but Zenith came behind Dread on his exo-wings, and with the warning of: 'Watch your back, because I'm back', shot Dread Wing from his saddle. Nightmare seized Zenith in her claws; but Blazewind purposely collided with her, and he fell free. Apex called: 'Heads up, Zenith!', and Zenith and Dread flew face-to-face. They fought by hand and foot, and Zenith kicked Dread's plasma-blaster from his hand, into the Warp Winds below. Peak leapt from Wing-Storm into the net, and Summit attacked Fryte; Peak rose on his exo-wings to assist Summit, but Nocturna on Nightmare came from their rear, and Nightmare's powerful tail swept both dragonators aside. Dread regained his seat on Blackheart, and called: 'The next time you see us, Zenith, will be your last! Warnado will be air-borne, on its way to crush Airlandis, once and for all!'. With that, he and the other villains retreated, and Zenith called his team to a halt. When his team-mates complained, Zenith only laughed, and led them back to Airlandis. On the runway, Peak said: 'Zenith, I don't get it! Why aren't we going after the reactor?', and Zenith laughed again.   
Quoth Summit: 'What are you laughing about? For once in his life, Peak's right! Once Dread gets it working, he can get Warnado air-borne in no time!'.   
Zenith laughed again, and said: 'The Truth is: since Orac and I never trusted Gangrene, we built a fail-safe'.   
Orac added: 'I did a little work on the Portable Unit, and I guarantee you: they'll get a real “Bang” out of it'.   
Sure enough: when Gangrene activated the stolen reactor, it exploded, and so did Dread Wing's vile temper. Gangrene was driven from his own laboratory, while his name echoed through Warnado once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any questions? Opinions? Let me know!


	7. Warnado Rising

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Dread Wing achieves one-half of his stated mission, and a little sabotage goes a long way…

In spite of his defeat, Dread Wing had spoken the truth, in his parting challenge to Zenith; for Warnado did rise, shortly afterward, and showed its true form at last. From deep in the darkness of Warnado, rose a foul vapour of pulverized lava, and the Gremwings fled before it. Gangrene, at Warnado's engines, said: 'A few more minutes, is all I ask'; but in came Dread Wing, and said: 'Your time is up, Gangrene. I swear: if you fail me this time, you will regret it for the rest of your life (which, by my calculations, will not be very long)'.   
Said Gangrene: 'I am going to give you, the only advantage the Dragon Flyz have over you: a floating city! This Magma Power Converter, is a thousand times more powerful, than any Crystal! Right now, even as we speak, it's pumping magma from deep below the surface of Old Earth. Once the fission-engines are finished, Warnado will rise high above the clouds, where it will stay until the end of Time'.   
Dread Wing ordered him: 'Ignite it, fool! Do you hear me? Go on! I stayed in the shadow of Airlandis long enough!'. Gangrene pressed the proper buttons, and turned the adjacent knob, and the fission-engines ignited. Red lightning crackled upon them, and Gangrene called: 'It's drawing the magma too quickly!', and his control-panel burst into pieces. He leapt aside, and hung above the shaft from which the magma rose. Said Dread Wing: 'You've destroyed us!', and flew from the engine-room, with Gangrene clinging to his leg. Great clouds of gas surrounded Warnado.  
Outside, the Dragon Flyz were in search of Ambers, as usual. Said Peak: 'This sector is stripped clean; not an Amber Crystal in sight!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Keep looking! We should complete the sweep!', and the dragons roared and gathered. A signal rang over Apex's wrist-computer, and she said: 'I'm getting heavy activity in Dread's sector: a volcanic reaction; 5.6 tremor and climbing fast! –There she blows!'.   
Said Peak: 'You've seen one eruption; you've seen them all'.   
Said Zenith: 'Problem is: this is a Dead Zone. There are no volcanoes here'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Well, there is now. Let's recon the area and check it out!', and our heroes turned their dragons in that direction.   
From the darkness of Warnado, rose a second cloud of pulverized lava, and the Gremwings fled before it, and Dread with them, with Gangrene still on him. An atom split, and Gangrene chortled and said: 'It's working! It's truly working! I can't believe it!'. Moments later, the Magma Power Converter refuelled Warnado's engines, and they roared at their awakening. Quoth Dread Wing: 'It's alive! The Warnado lives again! Give it Full Power, Gangrene!'. With that, they alighted, and Gangrene did as ordered, while Dread Wing called: 'Rise, Warnado! Rise!'.   
Said Zenith, outside: 'That's no volcano! It's Warnado!'; and even as our heroes watched, the monstrous machine rose into the air: no longer a hollow mountain, but a dark rocket-ship, as large as Airlandis and even heavier. The Gremwings fled it in two long straggling columns, and the openings closed behind them. Said Apex: 'Are those engines I hear? It can't be!'.   
Said Peak: 'Holy Dragon Dung! Look at the size of that thing!'.   
Quoth Zenith: 'Warnado's rising!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'We've got to stop it before it reaches Airlandis! Let's go, Sky-Fury!', and rode her into Warnado's very arms. Quoth he: 'There's our way in! Give it all you've got! Steady; steady; got ya!', and leapt into the nearest entrance, which closed behind him. His dragon worried, and Zenith said to her: 'Don't worry, Sky-Fury; we'll break Summit out!'. To his team, he added: 'To Airlandis!', and the four dragons carried their three riders home. All the time, Warnado rose higher and higher.  
In his throne-room, Dread Wing said: 'I have risen from the ashes like a fiery Phoenix, and now the flame of my vengeance will scorch the flesh of Airlandis, as the Dragon Flyz beg for my mercy!'. A groan shook Warnado, and Dread asked: 'What was that?!'.   
Said Gangrene: 'It's the Warp Winds! I don't know if the ship will hold together, under such force!'.   
Dread answered: 'Nothing will stop my Ascension!'.   
Gangrene insisted: 'But the Winds reach a velocity of 480 kilometers per second, here!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Do you feel that, Gangrene? It's Airlandis, trembling at our approach! Tremble, Airlandis; tremble!', and Warnado rose still higher.   
Within the terrible rocket, Summit tumbled down the nightmarish passages, until a halt; then telephoned: 'Zenith, do you read me? I'm checked into Hotel Dread. Peak! Apex! Anybody!'; but no-one answered.  
Meanwhile, Summit’s brothers and sister had already returned to Airlandis, and Sky-Fury with them. Once there, the dragonators dismounted, and made their report, and the chief Councillors met in Skywatch's tower to discuss the danger. Said Aaron: 'There's no reason to think Warnado could make it through the Warp Winds'.   
Said Joshua: 'We must prepare, none the less!’.  
Aaron conceded: 'Joshua is right. Orac: make ready the Warp Cannon!'.   
Said Orac: 'But it's still experimental! We've never tried it before!'.   
Said Zenith: 'We can blow the Warnado out of the sky, but we've got to get Summit out, first!'.   
Said Joshua: 'It's a Council's decision, Zenith. We are One on this. Under no circumstances must Warnado be permitted to enter our air-space! Dread must be put down!'.   
Said Apex: 'What about Summit?', and Aaron added: 'We have until the Warnado is in range of the Warp Cannon to rescue him', and the Dragon Flyz departed to do so. On the runway, the dragonators' team-leaders assembled, and Zenith told them: 'Dragonators, power up. You all know your orders. Exo-wing: check!'. Everyone said: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', and took to the air in formation. Zenith among them said: 'Summit is in there; but when we get down there, the most important thing is stop Warnado reaching Airlandis, at any price'.   
On Airlandis, Orac and his technicians prepared the Warp Cannon. Said he: 'Ready to test-fire! Initiate!', and a technician launched a practice-target. Said Orac: 'Fire!', and a beam of pure energy destroyed the target as it rose. Said Orac: 'Again! Using double-power this time!', and the technicians raised the power; but the Warp Cannon sparked and smoked, and shut itself down. Said Orac: 'Run through the sequence again, from “A” to “Z”. We've got to get it working!'.   
Warnado passed the Warp Winds, and Gangrene said: 'We did it! We did it! This ship is intact! Minimal Damage!'.   
Dread Wing answered: 'You see what you can do with a little Faith, Gangrene. Now, Airlandis: you are mine!', and laughed. Warnado rose above the Wind Pits and into the stratosphere; and in its dark tunnels, Summit rose too, on his exo-wings. This woke the Gremwings, who chased him; and their screeching caught the ears of Dread Wing, who said: 'It appears, some one left a window open and let a Fly get in'. Fryte and Nocturna unfolded their wings and flew in search of the invader. When she saw Summit, Nocturna fired her lava-launcher on him; but he whirled from her shots, and stunned her with his Windjammer. Fryte answered: 'I will kill you for that, Dragon Fly!' and shot Summit's Windjammer, but Nocturna said: 'No, Fryte! This score is mine!'.   
Summit fled, and Nocturna pursued him, and Fryte intercepted him ahead and said: 'Hah! Short cut!'; but Summit smote Fryte and stood on the floor. Said he: 'Do you like games? Here's one: Tag! You're it!'; and with that, he kicked Fryte aside and seized his plasma-blaster. Said he: 'For me? You shouldn't have!', and flew down another shaft. Said Nocturna to Fryte: 'Stop! There's no reason to follow. He won't come out alive! Not from the Corridor of Blood!'; for Summit, with the Mouth of Warnado closed, flew directly into this same Corridor. Said he: 'It's no good; I've lost all communication! I've got to find a way to bring the Warnado down on my own!'.   
He had not been long in the Corridor, before he found it inhabited by a swarm of leathery five-eyed creatures: something like disembodied heads, with legs, tails, and wings. By their screeching, he classified them as 'Some kind of mutated Gremwing!', and added: 'Better show them who's Boss!', and fired his plasma-blaster upon them. This aroused the strange creatures, and they attacked him on all sides. He lost his plasma-blaster in the fight, and resorted to his spare Windjammer; and when this too proved not weapon enough, to a trick he called: 'Dragon Fly turbo-spin!', which meant whirling so fast, his exo-wings swatted his enemies down, and carried him from their territory.  
In the skies around Airlandis, two teams of dragonators approached Warnado on their dragons. Said Zenith: 'This is Dragonator One. We have visual contact with the Warnado. Prepare to engage. Do you hear me, Zarkan?', who answered: 'Loud and clear, Dragonator One'.   
Said Zenith: 'Orac needs at least half-an-hour to get the Cannon up-and-running. We have to buy him some time'. Riptor roared, and Zenith gasped, as the teams drew near their enemy.   
On Warnado, Dread Wing announced to his Dramen: 'For too long, we have coveted the floating city of Airlandis. Now we will cast the humans and their city to the Warp Winds. We will purge them from the Skies. I proclaim to-day, the Day of Dread, in honor of our final victory!'. The Dramen sprouted wings and flew, to prepare for the battle.  
On Wing-Storm, outside, Peak said: 'Now I know how David felt, when he met Goliath!'.   
Said Apex: 'We're going to need more than a sling-shot, to bring that down!'.   
Said Zenith: 'We've got more, but we won't have it for another half-hour, and that's all the time we've got to get Summit out'.   
Said Apex: 'What if we can't get Summit out?', and Zenith answered: 'Not an option'.   
On Warnado, Nocturna looked at a screen, and said: 'The Dragon Flyz are in formation'.   
Dread Wing answered: 'Lock on! With all exterior heat-plasma-guns!', and this was done at once. Said Dread Wing: 'Welcome to your destruction, Dragon Flyz. Fire!', and the sky was soon cross-hatched by streams of plasma. A signal came: 'Dragonator One, this is Dragonator Five. Can't secure entry! Under heavy fire! Impossible to attempt rescue'.   
Dram on his dragon rode free of the formation, and caught Dragonator Five when a plasma-blast unseated him. Another shot unseated both; and Dram spread his own wings to support himself and his comrade, while his dragon recovered from the stroke. Said Dram: 'You are hurt. You must return to Airlandis!', and carried him there.   
On Warnado, Summit flew further, down the dark corridors; and when he heard the battle, said to himself: 'Sounds like Big Brother and the troops are on their way! But they'll never make it in time. It's up to me. There's got to be a way!'. He reached for a pipe, saw what it carried, and said: 'Magma! That's where the power's coming from! Dread is pumping magma to power the ship's engines. I just have to follow it and “go with the flow”, and did so.   
Outside, Zenith and Riptor were surrounded by plasma-blasts, and Riptor roared in distress; but Zenith rode him closer to the monstrous machine, and destroyed one of the blasters with his Windjammer. Dragon Nine was stung by another blaster, and fell a few hundred meters; but recovered herself before she could further fall. Zarkan called to the rider: 'Pull her nose up, Nora. Pull her up!', and himself rode to Warnado. Nora obeyed; but she and her dragon were driven into retreat. Said Zarkan: 'The fight's over for you, Nora. Return to Skywatch!', and they obeyed.   
Peak and Wing-Storm came closest to Warnado; and Peak said: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', and took to the air on his exo-wings. Now apart, Peak and Wing-Storm searched the hull. Said Peak: 'There's got to be a way in!', and fired his Windjammer on Warnado's metallic skin, until something exploded. Quoth he: 'Bingo! Here I come, Summit!'; but a Dark Dramen leapt from the opening, and seized him. Said Peak: 'I've two words for you, my friend: dental hygiene!', and knocked him down. Another Dramen attacked Peak from behind; but Apex shot this one with her Windjammer, and carried Peak onto Blazewind.   
On Warnado, Summit flew further, down the dark corridors, and said: 'I must be getting closer to the source. It's getting hotter. I can feel it!'. Sure enough, he soon came upon Gangrene's fission-engine, and said: 'This is it. This has to be the engine-room'.   
Gangrene called: 'Careful!', and Summit hid. Said Gangrene to some Dramen: 'Careful! Be very careful! We can't let the magma flow too fast. If we do, the converter will explode!', and all the mutants bent over the control-panels.   
From the Mouth of Warnado rose Dread Wing on Blackheart, and Zenith on Riptor said: 'Don't get too high-and-mighty yet, Dread. If you want Airlandis, you still have to get past me!', and fired his Windjammer on the two monsters. Dread Wing retaliated with his plasma-blaster, and Riptor was hurt; but the valiant dragon recirculated his enemies, and Zenith shot Dread Wing in the shoulder. Blackheart roared and confronted Riptor, and threw Zenith off him with a fire-ball. Said Dread Wing: 'You fall from grace, Dragon Fly. But don't worry, Zenith; Airlandis will be right behind you!'; but Riptor caught Zenith from below. Every wounded dragon and rider returned to Airlandis, just as Warnado equalled it in height. Said Orac: 'Here it comes! Get the Warp Cannon into position!', and took a station behind it, and telephoned: 'Zenith, this is Orac! Warnado is within range! What about Summit? Do I fire? Come in, Zenith!'.   
Aaron answered, instead: 'Dragonator down, Orac. Zenith is unconscious!'.   
Said Orac: 'Warnado is in range. None of us are going to get any older than to-morrow, if we don't do something now!'. Aaron hesitated, and Joshua said: 'Then you must fire!'. Orac's technician said: 'Target locked, sir'.   
Said Orac: 'Stand clear!'. Aaron looked at Joshua; Joshua looked thoughtful; and Aaron turned aside and said: 'Good luck, my son' to Summit.   
Said Orac: 'Fire!', and the Warp Cannon shot at Warnado. A great crash shook the flying fortress; but in his throne-room, Dread Wing said: 'Hah! I am invincible! I cannot die! I am for ever!!', and Warnado flew higher.   
Said Joshua on Airlandis: 'It didn't work!', and Orac said: 'Fire again!'. The Warp Cannon shot many times more at Warnado, and another great crash shook the flying fortress, until Summit and the Dark Dramen, in the engine-room, were forced onto their faces. The Warp Cannon crackled and smoked, and finally exploded, and people fled in terror, while Warnado cast its shadow over Airlandis. Said Aaron: 'What's he planning?'.   
Said Joshua: 'The Dragon Flyz failed. The Cannon failed. We are lost!', and Aaron added: 'Lost, unless Summit is still alive!'.   
Zenith and Apex staggered into view, behind the two Councillors, and Zenith said: 'I know he is, Father. He's just waiting for his chance!'. In Warnado's engine-room, the Dark Dramen rose to their feet, and caught sight of Summit. Said Gangrene: 'It's the Dragon Fly. Get him!'; but Summit threw a barrel at the first Dramen, and another at the second. Gangrene gasped, and the third Dramen fired a plasma-blaster. Summit leapt out of the way, and Nocturna seized him by the throat and said: 'Do you know what you face, Dragon Fly? Allow me to show it to you!'.  
In the throne-room, Dread Wing said: 'Good-bye, Airlandis', and fired the exterior plasma-blasters on it. The city's golden pavements were shattered, and smoke rose everywhere.   
In the engine-room, Summit smote Nocturna and seized her plasma-blaster. Said he: 'You boys shouldn't play with fire; you could get burned', and tried to leave the room; but one of the Dramen fired after him, and incinerated a control-panel instead.   
Said Gangrene: 'Stop it! Stop it! The pressure is building up, in the converter! We can't control the magma if you shoot the valves off, you idiots!'.   
Meanwhile, Summit took to the air on his exo-wings, and Nocturna spread her own wings after him. Gangrene turned to the converter's controls, and said: 'It's too late! It's jammed! Run for your lives!'. The Dark Dramen fired after Summit, but missed him every time, and hit the valves, the controls, and the various pipes and connectors instead. One after another broke and burst. Under this bombardment, the great machinery of Warnado came to a halt. The external plasma-blasters ceased to fire, and nothing Dread could do, would re-ignite them. Warnado fell, and Dread in his throne-room said: 'Gangrene! What's happening out there? Start the engines. Start the engines!'; but Warnado plunged backward through the Warp Winds, into the very crater from which it emerged, and raised a great cloud of dust. When the dust cleared, Warnado lay in its former place, as deeply as before, with gigantic cracks in the earth all around it.   
Summit escaped on his exo-wings, and flew through the Wind Pits, to Airlandis. The citizens cheered, and his brothers and sister bore him shoulder-high through the streets. When some volunteers took their places, Zenith said: 'Cue us, next time you check into the Hotel Dread, without a reservation'. Summit answered: 'I don't think I'll be staying there again; I didn't like the view! But I like the view from Up Here!', and the others laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is mine: as usual, Nocturna seems to have an especial grudge against Summit. 
> 
> Gangrene's cryptic reference to Warnado as 'the ship' in Ch. II, receives some explanation in this. One begins to suspect, it was an extraterrestrial spaceship, crashed on Earth, and its contents included the substance called 'Mutane' in the series, and possibly the alien DNA of which the mutants, presumably, are descended. Its crash may even have caused the Cataclysm, by whatever course of events. What do my readers think?


	8. Bugs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Dread Wing resorts to biological warfare…

So ended the Rise of Warnado; but Fate had other adventures in store. For some time, Dread Wing stayed close to home, while the cracks cooled where Warnado had riven the earth; but a few months later, he and Blackheart roamed once more over the steaming wasteland. Growls arose from the scorched jungle, and a four-legged mutant leapt onto the wing of Blackheart, who flamed him off and flew on with a roar. Said Dread Wing: 'Your stomach must be empty, my fearsome friend'. Blackheart alighted in a shallow lava-pool, and drank; and as he did, he trod upon a large Amber-colored pod, and a dozen large insects flew from it, and stung him. Said Dread Wing to Blackheart: 'Enough!', and Blackheart roared and flew back to Warnado, whose giant Mouth shut behind them.   
A little later, acid rain fell upon Warnado and the land around it, and lightning-bolts shook the sky with thunder. Blackheart had fallen ill, and Gangrene examined him. Quoth Dread Wing: 'What have you done to my dragon, Gangrene?!', and Gangrene answered: 'Not me, Dread Wing! These Children of the Amber are to blame!', and showed him the insect. Said Dread Wing: 'How can this tiny Bug fell my great Behemoth?'. Said Gangrene: 'The insect carries a powerful Virus'. Said Dread Wing: 'How is it that their sting has no effect on you?'. Said Gangrene: 'The virus seems only to affect Dragons. Imagine what an entire colony of these creatures could do!', and laughed. Said Dread Wing: 'Yes; imagine: A disease that can bring down a Dragon, can bring down an Empire. I'm sure there's something Useful in that', and laughed.   
Soon afterwards, in Gangrene's evil laboratory, Dread Wing asked: 'How many will we have in a few days?', and Gangrene answered: 'This electronic womb, will produce millions! Thousands-upon-thousands for every dragon in Airlandis!'. Said Dread Wing: 'When Gangrene's little play-things take wing, we will divide and conquer!'. Said Nocturna: 'Separate the Dragon from the Fly'. Said Dread Wing: 'And with the Dragons indisposed, the Flies are easily squashed. See to it, Nocturna, that my plans are carried out when the swarm is released'. Said Nocturna: 'From womb, to a Dragon's tomb!', and flew to do it.   
On Airlandis, in the Rainforest Biosphere, some water-birds were catching fish, and all took wing when Peak and Summit ran through the adjacent path, by way of exercise. Summit tired, a little, and Peak said: 'I think it's time to hang up your exo-wings, Summit. Soon you'll be too old to be a dragonator. Try to keep up!'. Summit answered: 'Keep that up, and This Old Man's going to knock you into the Next Millennium!', and gave Peak some half-intended punches. Said Peak: 'Whoa! Did you see that? Of course not; everything's just a blur at your age!'.   
Zenith and Apex joined them, and Apex said: 'Well, before your own eye-sight goes, why don't you take a look at what we're fighting for?', and all four looked into the Biosphere.   
It was indeed a lovely sight: a tropical parkland of a thousand kilometers, thick with plants and animals. Said Zenith: 'And what we're fighting to have again. To think the whole Planet was like this, once!'.   
A signal came through his Vox Box: 'Attention, Dragon Flyz One! This a Code Red D-3 Alert! Dragon Defense Deployment! This is not a drill! Report to your Emergency Positions immediately!'. At once, the team said 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', and took to the air on their exo-wings. The Dragons arose from their eyries, and each dragonator alighted in the saddle; then on their dragons' backs, Team One rode into the clouds.   
Said Zenith: 'Image locked! Long-distance 'scopes identify Nocturna and a sky-patrol of Dark Dramen'.   
Said Apex: 'Doesn't sound like Dread's usual attack-detail'.   
Said Zenith: 'Whatever they're up to, I want Confrontation and Termination before they enter our air-space. Let's rip-and-roar!', and the dragons did so.   
Sky-Fury saw the enemy first, and roared in warning; and Nocturna on Nightmare attacked face-to-face, with her plasma-blaster. Said Zenith: 'Looks like we've found what we're looking for'. A plasma-blast hit Fury, and she roared again; Nocturna fired a dozen more, but missed, and Zenith ordered: 'Surf-split! Apex; with me. Peak and Summit: cut left!'. With this done, Nocturna fired on both sides, but missed every time, and the Dragon Flyz retaliated with their Windjammers. Nocturna and her Dramen retreated, on their dragons, and the Flyz re-assembled behind them. Said Nocturna: 'The clouds will conceal the swarm', and released the insects from a canister. The Dragon Flyz on their dragons followed Nocturna and her Dramen into the clouds; but Zenith said: 'They won't find us, either. Something's not right. Let's wait for them in the clear', and the team returned to the open sky. Nocturna on Nightmare and her Dramen on their own dragons plunged into a Wind Pit, and Apex said: 'There they go!'. Quoth Summit: 'Looks like they weren't in the mood for a fight'. Said Apex: 'That's the only mood the Dark Dramen know!'. Said Zenith: 'Apex is right! There's something wrong with this picture. Better report to Skywatch', and did so: 'Skywatch; this is Dragon Fly One! The invader has retreated; we are returning to Airlandis'.   
Return they did; but the insects followed them, and one of them stung Wing-Storm. Said Peak: 'Whoa! This Dragon's lagging! Something's wrong with Storm! Zenith: Wing-Storm is sick!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Apex: can they tell you what's wrong?'.   
Apex put the question to Blazewind, and gave Zenith his answer: '“Hard to breathe! Wings heavy! We don't know what's happening! We can't see!”'.   
Said Zenith: 'Apex: pull yourself out of it! Skywatch: this is Dragon Fly One! Initiate Emergency Docking Procedures! We're coming down hard! –All of us!', and the dragons landed heavily on Airlandis. Wing-Storm landed first; and himself sickest, tripped over Skywatch and slid on his chest along most of the runway. Said Orac: 'Get a harness on this Dragon and get him off the deck! We've got three more coming in, right behind him!'.   
Said Peak: 'Roll out! Let's go!', and dismounted, while the other three landed more neatly. Said he: 'It'll be all right, Storm; I'm right here with you!', and Skywatch did as Orac ordered; but the insects flew into the dragons' eyrie.   
Soon afterwards, Aaron studied the virus under a microscope. Said Zenith: 'Two-thirds of the Dragon Elders have already been infected. We'll be at zero-drag in no time. What's wrong with them, Father?'.   
Said Aaron: 'There's a contagion in their blood: it appears to be a rare strain of insects' venom. Do you remember coming into contact with any kind of swarm?'.   
Apex answered: 'No; but there was something in those clouds, besides us’.  
Said Aaron: 'That explains why Nocturna beat such a Hasty Retreat!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Is there any cure?'.   
Said Aaron: 'Before I know whether there is, I'll need a sample of the insects' pupae, still in its cocoon; and if this is Dread's doing, he'll know I need a specimen, and he'll be waiting for you'.   
Said Zenith: 'Well, he won't have to wait much longer. We leave for Old Earth, right away!', and Team One took to the skies on substitute dragons.   
Quoth Summit: 'Whoa! Calm down, Girl; calm down! Whoo! Give me an old drag over a new one, any day!'.   
Said Peak: 'We're lucky these young ones are still able to fly!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Apex: can you mind-link with these reptilian rookies and tell them to Calm Down?'.   
Said Apex: 'I did! They're closing me out! They're just not used to being ridden!'.   
A little further, Zenith said: 'Well, they'd better get used to it, and fast! Wind Pits, coming up!', and the Dragons dove into them.   
In the midst of the Pits, Peak ordered his substitute: 'Down! Get your snout down!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'If you need any flying-tips, Peak, you just ask this Old Man here!'. Peak forced a laugh.   
In spite of their substitute dragons' inexperience, the Dragon Flyz rode them to Old Earth, with all unharmed. Nocturna on Nightmare saw them and said: 'See how easy it takes one Bug to find another!'. As the Dragon Flyz flew into range, Nocturna on Nightmare, Fryte on Skunk, and the Dark Dramen on their dragons opened fire with their plasma-blasters, and the substitute dragons took fright. Said Zenith: 'Dragon Flyz: opposite flanks. Pivot, and fire at will!'.   
Said Peak: 'The plasma-blasts spooked them! They won't move!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Let's get out of here! Dragon Flyz, maximise!’; but Nocturna put her blaster to Zenith's head and answered: 'Open those wings, and you die, Dragon Fly!', and her Dark Dramen surrounded the Dragon Flyz. All our heroes were taken prisoner, and bound upside-down in Warnado, above a pit.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Well, well; the Dragon Flyz have come to an end, as all good things must'.   
Said Zenith: 'Don't count your Gremwings too soon, Dread Wing'.   
Dread Wing answered: 'Admit your defeat, Zenith! A simple Bug has vanquished your best battle-dragons. We have entered a New Era: the Year 1, After the Dragon! Extinction is a mere formality'.   
Summit answered: 'Airlandis, will never be yours'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'O, without you, Airlandis will fall like a stone, and the pitiful history of humankind, will be no more'.   
Summit answered: 'I'm not done with you, Dread Wing!', and tried to free himself. Dread only laughed, and flew away, while two Dramen stayed to watch his prisoners.   
Said Peak: 'We've got to get out of here!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'My eyes may be going; but that still looks like a force-field to me', which held them all in place.   
Said Zenith: 'Hold on. Dramen are part-Dragon! Are you up to it, Apex?'.   
Said she: 'I can try'.   
Said Peak: 'Can anybody tell me what's going on?’.  
Said Apex: 'Better yet; I'll show you', and linked her mind with that of the Dramen nearest her, who started for the force-field's controls. His partner asked: 'Where are you going?'; but Apex's victim paid him no heed, and merely annulled the force-field. The second Dramen named him 'Traitor!' and smote him down; but the Dragon Flyz were free, and with their Windjammers frightened him into submission. They left him there, and took to the air on their exo-wings. Said Zenith: 'Let's go! We'll rescue the Dragons. Apex: find that hive and get back to Father with those cocoons'.   
Said Apex: 'I'm half-way there' and flew down one tunnel, while her brothers followed the other. Meanwhile, the Dramen sounded the alarm, and Nocturna went in search of the Dragon Flyz. Said she: 'This time I will show no mercy'.  
Along her corridor, Apex heard Gangrene complain: 'Why am I taken from my research? I must attend to the needs of the colony!', and hid in a side-passage for him. Two Dramen passed her, with Gangrene between them, and one said: 'Dread Wing wants to see you!'.   
Said Gangrene: 'But there's no need! Tell him I've already cured Blackheart of his sleeping-sickness'.   
Said Apex, behind them: 'Hey! Simon Says: “drop the mutant”', and felled one of the Dramen with a flying-side-kick. To the other, she said again: 'Drop the mutant'. He did, and sprang at her; but she threw him upon a wall, and said: 'I didn't say: “Simon Says”'. His partner seized her, and she backed him into the opposite wall and knocked him senseless. Gangrene fled; but Apex took to the air on her exo-wings and caught him. Said she: 'I want the cure;–– now. Show me where the colony is!'.   
Said Gangrene: 'I don't know what you're talking about;–– don't drop me!'; for now, they were between the Mouth of Warnado, and the lava-pit below.   
Said Apex: 'That depends on you, Little Man'.   
Said he: 'All right! It's outside; go that way!', and Apex did so.  
Two Dramen came upon Zenith and his brothers in a passage. Peak felled one, and Summit wrestled with the other. Said Peak: 'Need some help, Old Man?'.   
Summit answered: 'No' and knocked heads with his opponent, who fell senseless.   
Quoth Summit: 'How does Apex do that?!', and Peak answered: 'I guess her head's harder than yours'.   
Said Zenith: 'We've got to get those Dragons out of here before reënforcements show up!', and all three took to the air on their exo-wings.   
In Gangrene's laboratory, Apex had its master by the throat, who said: 'The fluid the bugs are nurturing contains all the elements necessary to reverse the effects of its poison. It's really quite miraculous!'. Apex broke the incubator with her two fists, and all the insects scattered. She left Warnado on her exo-wings, and telephoned: 'Come in, Airlandis! This is Apex. Prepare the Dragons; I have the antidote!'.  
Inside Warnado, her brothers were attacked by Nocturna, Fryte, and three Dark Dramen. Said Peak: 'In here!', and they rushed down a smaller tunnel. Said Nocturna: 'No need to go after them! They'll never come out of there alive'.  
At the other end of the tunnel, Peak asked: 'Do you think we ditched them?'.   
Said Zenith: 'If only life were so easy'. The tunnel shook, and Summit asked: 'What was that?'. The answer came a moment later, in the form of a giant green caterpillar, as large as Blackheart and even longer, which suddenly burst through the floor. The dragonators scattered, and the grub snapped at Summit, but missed him, and he fired his Windjammer upon it; but it was unharmed, and merely charged at Peak instead, who called 'Watch out!', and leapt aside. Summit fired again, and the grub snapped at him; but he clomb atop its head, and Zenith beckoned to Peak. With Summit still on its head, the monster returned to its hole, and Zenith said: 'It's blind, and attracted to sound!', and flew after it on his exo-wings, with Peak behind him.   
At the bottom of the hole was a basin, into which opened several shafts; and on the floor lay Summit. Peak hastened to his side; and the monster burst through the floor. Zenith called: 'Hey! Over here! –No; over here!', and the monster charged after him, but met only the wall. Said he: 'Everybody out. I'll keep it here'.   
Said Peak: 'We can't leave you!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Do as I say, Peak. I can't fight you, and it! Now go!'; so Peak spread his exo-wings and carried Summit out. With his Windjammer, Zenith turned the monster against one wall after another, until it knocked itself senseless; then rejoined his brothers.   
The substitute Dragons were in a cage at the end of the shaft in which Peak and Summit had escaped; and by good fortune, Peak and Summit came upon them. Said Zenith: 'Get them out of those chains quick! We'll take them out by the Main Tunnel'. At once, Peak and Summit cut the chains with their Windjammers; and all three rode the substitute dragons from Warnado.   
Said Zenith: 'They're right behind us!'; for Dread Wing on Blackheart now followed them, in the lead of his minions. Quoth he: 'Incinerate them, Blackheart!', who spat fire. He missed; but Summit said: 'These dragons aren't fast enough! They're gaining!'.   
Said Peak: 'Keep going, Summit! Don't look back! “What you don't know, won't hurt you”!'.   
Summit answered: 'That's what you think!'; for Blackheart's fire and Nocturna's plasma-blasts had nearly hit him.   
Said Zenith: 'Look! Great Dragon!'; for now, their own dragons had recovered from the sickness and descended to the rescue.   
Quoth Summit: 'Here comes Riptor!', and all four dragonators boarded their proper mounts. Zenith gave the order: 'Right wing, pivot-spoke!', and the four dragons swerved in formation. Their riders' Windjammers unseated Fryte and disarmed Nocturna, and Dread on Blackheart retreated, with the parting cry of 'Your future just got shorter for that, Dragon Flyz! The next time we meet, will be the last!', in which he was quite mistaken.   
Zenith scoffed: '“Promises, promises!”'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Let's go home', and Peak added: 'Yeah; this Old Man needs his rest'.   
Summit answered: 'You know, Peak: you're beginning to bug me with this “Old Man” routine'.   
Said Peak: 'Do me a favour, Summit: don't use the word, “Bug”’.  
Summit answered: 'Only if you can tag this Old Man's drag before we get back to Airlandis!'; and the two raced their dragons home. Zenith and Apex laughed, and followed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was probably the original of 'How to Train Your Dragon, Part II', in which the riders mount fledglings while their own dragons are out of the fight.


	9. Lost Eden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A rather tragic episode…

Some time later, Airlandis ran its crystal-cycle once more, and the Dragon Flyz descended to replenish her supply. Peak and Wing-Storm flew low over the lava, and the young man said: 'Dragonator Peak, shaking and baking; feeling the heat on my feet!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Back in formation, Peak. This is a crystal-run, not a joy-ride!'.   
Peak answered: 'I'm doing what I do best: winging and singing!'; but Summit said: 'Less singing and more winging, Little Brother. You're acting like some rookie-cadet who's never been on a Dragon's back before!'.   
Said Apex: 'We're zeroing in on the target-site now, Zenith. Better start some Amber-shopping quick, before Dread decides to close the store'.   
Back in formation they went; and nearer the target-side, Zenith gave orders: 'Peak, Summit: eyes open and wide. We've got your backs, so your mission is strictly flash-and-grab, not Combat'. Said Peak: 'Got it. I've got a lock on the crystals; big ones!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Go get it, Peak. Wing-sharp!'. Peak on Wing-Storm and Summit on Sky-Fury flew into a narrow lava-canyon, and each dragon seized a crystal.   
Said Peak: 'It's like snatching food from a baby Dragon!', and Wing-Storm roared his agreement. A moment later, the crystal shattered in Wing-Storm's talons, and he plunged toward the lava. Said Peak: 'Come on, Wing-Storm, pull up! Pull up!'; and Wing-Storm dipped his larboard wing almost into the lava, but rose from the canyon. Said Peak: 'Remind me to give you a special dessert to-night, Stormy'.   
Zenith asked: 'Peak; what happened?', and Peak answered: 'I'm lucky to still be in the saddle after that dive-flight'.   
Quoth Summit: 'The Crystal exploded! It was some kind of Fake'. The Dragons flew on. Suddenly the air was full of screeching Gremwings, and Dread Wing on Blackheart was among them. Said Apex: 'Zenith! Cloud-shroud is dissolving! It's a trap!'.   
Dread Wing roared, and ordered his followers: 'Attack the intruders, and show no mercy!'. At once, the Gremwings swept upon the Dragon Flyz, who shot them down. Dread and Blackheart advanced on the leaders, and Zenith said: 'Wings up, Apex; we're going ballistic!'.   
Said she: 'Nose-bleed Time!', and both rode their dragons into the clouds above Blackheart. Dread Wing answered: 'Fools! You can't escape me!'.  
Near by them, Nightmare bore Nocturna after Summit and Peak, of whom Peak said: 'They're closing fast! Gear up, Summit!', and both turned their dragons against Nocturna, whom Peak shot from Nightmare's back. Said he: 'Let's rock;–– and rocket!'. Nocturna spread her wings and flew. Zenith and Apex flew above the clouds; but Blackheart checked their advance with a lava-blast, and rose before them himself, with Dread on his shoulders.   
Said Zenith: 'Apex, get out of here! Blackheart’s going to flash;–– I'm hit! I'm hit!'; for at that moment, Blackheart's fiery breath smote Riptor, who retreated. Apex on Blazewind fled before the Gremwings, and called her brothers: 'Peak, Summit: Zenith is going into a zerg-spin! He's falling right into the volcanoes!'.   
Said Peak: 'Estimated Time of Arrival: two minutes!', but Apex answered: 'Negative! It'll be over by then. Stay in your positions and call for re-enforcements'. Zenith and Riptor plunged nearer the volcanoes, and Dread watched and laughed. Said Zenith: 'Riptor! We're in a dead-fall! Pull out! Wings steady! That's it!', and Riptor saved himself in flight; flew down a canyon; and hid beside a lava-fall.   
Apex called: 'Zenith! Give me your position! I repeat: What is your status?'.   
Zenith did not answer; for he had no time to do so, before Riptor crash-landed upon a rock amid the lava. Both lay there senseless, with the lava almost upon them, while Apex called again, and got no answer.  
Above the Warp Winds, Peak said: 'Our tails are clean. That last sky-raid shook them'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Looking sharp, Peak! Now we've got to find the others!'.   
His brother called: 'Peak to Zenith: where are you, Big Bro?', but got no answer. Summit called Apex; but had no answer, either. Said he: 'This is bad. Either they won't respond, or they can't'.   
His brother called: 'Peak to Airlandis! We have a situation: two dragonators down! We've lost contact with Zenith and Apex: possible “Crash-and-Burn” Situation!'.   
Aaron answered: 'We hear you, Son. We'll authorize a search-and-rescue team immediately'. Quoth Summit: 'O.K.; but the area is full of Gremwings! We'll need serious re-enforcements to scan it!'.   
In the vent of the volcano, Zenith and Riptor came to their senses. Said Zenith: 'We've had better landings than this, my friend; as a matter of fact, I think all our landings have been better'. Riptor nodded. Zenith dismounted, and said: 'I know it's not your fault, and you can bet your tail that Dread will pay for smoking your wing. Now let's get out of sight'.   
Riptor moaned, and two voices came over Zenith's communicator: 'Summit to Zenith! Come in Zenith!'; 'Peak to Zenith: stop jerking our tails. Where are you?'.   
Said Zenith: 'Negative, Summit; if I respond, Dread will lock onto my position for sure!', and silenced his communicator instead. Above the canyon, Dread Wing said: 'Where is he?! I saw Zenith fly this way; I know he's here somewhere!', and Blackheart roared in agreement.   
Said Nocturna: 'Maybe he perished', but Dread answered: 'Never! Zenith is a survivor. He would never take the die-fly into a volcano. Gremwings! Spread out! Search this mountain! Find him! Nocturna: Use Gangrene's eavesdropping device and monitor Airlandis' distress-channel. He'll call them soon enough; and when he does, we'll have him!'.  
Elsewhere, Apex on Blazewind found Zenith and Riptor, first. Said she: 'You're all right! We couldn't reach your Vox Box. Peak and Summit have been trying to contact you!'.   
Said he: 'I couldn't answer. Dread might be scanning us, right now'.   
Said she: 'Can you fly? –Riptor looks pretty toasted'.   
Said he: 'No chance. Riptor's burnt badly, and I think my exo-wings are out-of-commission. Dread Wing smoked us good'.   
Said she: 'Climb onto Blaze, and we'll fly out while we have the chance'.   
Said he: 'I'm not leaving Riptor here. If that cave is large enough, we can hide there. Dread will think we've crashed into the volcano'.   
On Airlandis, Skywatch sent signal after signal to Zenith;–– to no avail. Said Peak: 'Anything?', and Aaron answered: 'Nothing yet. Our best hope is that Zenith contact us'.   
In the volcano, the Gremwings searched the vents, while Zenith, Riptor, Blazewind, and Apex hid in the cave. Said Zenith: 'Thanks to this cave, I think we're safe for the moment, and it should buy time for this healing-salve to do its trick! Take it easy, Riptor; it's too unsafe for you to fly, until this wound is healed! A few more hours, and heal it will!'. Riptor rumbled in agreement. A curious sound came from the rear of the cave, and Apex asked: 'Did you hear that?'.   
She and Zenith investigated, while the Dragons stayed behind. The rear of the cave was lined with roots, and opened upon a tunnel. Said Apex: 'The sound: it's just around that bend!', and something flew past her. Said Zenith: 'Get down! We're under attack!'; but Apex answered: 'No! Look, up there!', and indicated a birds'-nest on a ledge: the first birds'-nest either dragonator had seen in the wild. At the far end of the tunnel, the mountain was hollow, and full of trees on the banks of a river. The trees were green and delicate; the water cool and clean; and the air full of the songs of birds. Said Zenith: 'After all this time;–– we've found it! Paradise!'.   
On Airlandis, Skywatch sent again: 'Apex; Zenith: do you copy?', and Zenith answered: 'Zenith to Airlandis! Come in, Airlandis!'.   
Aaron answered: 'Airlandis here, Zenith. What's your situation? Give us your position and we'll send you an evacuation-team!'.   
On Warnado, Gangrene eavesdropped on the Airlandian transmissions, with one of Warnado's machines; so he and Dread heard all that Skywatch and the dragonators said. Zenith had just answered his father: 'No need for an evac. Dread is probably listening!', and Dread said to himself: 'Brilliant deduction, Zenith. Now: just tell me where you are!'.   
Peak asked: 'What happened, Zenith? Give us your position!', and Zenith answered: 'No time to explain. Meet me at the following co-ordinates, and I'll show you a Legend Come True. Zenith out', and gave the co-ordinates.   
Sure enough, Summit, Peak, and Aaron soon found the spot. Said Aaron: 'Are you sure this is the place, Peak?', and Peak answered: 'These are the co-ordinates Zenith gave', and the three went within. They had just turned the bend when Zenith called: 'This way! Hurry! You've got to see this!', and led the way to Apex, and the Oasis beyond. The newcomers stood awestruck.  
The cavern lay before them for kilometers, and through its whole length ran the river. Trees and vines grew upon every ledge, and the air was full of the songs of birds: green and delicate trees, such as grew only in Airlandis' Bio-Spheres, and birds whose song had not been heard on the surface, since the Cataclysm. A great waterfall fed the river (purified, perhaps, of all the water on the land, by the intervening stone;–– or else sprung from below, or from some ancient cistern buried by the Cataclysm itself), and butterflies bred in the grass on its banks. The music of victory rang in the Airlandians' ears. Said Zenith: 'In all your dreams, Father, did you think something like this could really exist?'.   
Aaron answered: 'It's possible. The Legends are true! We may have reached the end of our Journey. This is the safe-haven Airlandis has sought, all these years'. With that, he and the Dragon Flyz approached the waterfall, and Zenith said: 'A Lost Eden: as green and lush as Earth ever was!'; but Dread Wing answered: 'And it belongs to me! The Ruler of All Old Earth!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Dread Wing: you are the intruder here! I claim this place in the Name of Airlandis!'.   
Dread answered: 'My, my, how quickly your feeble minds forget: you humans abandoned the surface of the Earth to me, when your kind destroyed it!'.   
Said Aaron: 'We have paid for that mistake; paid in full! It's time we collect; this is ours!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Who is going to stop me from taking what is rightfully mine? You, or your righteousness?!', and Blackheart, with Dread on his back, swept them all down with a stroke of his wings. Dread gave a signal, and a hundred Dark Dramen rushed into sight, ready for battle.   
Said Aaron: 'Do you think me fool enough, to come alone, Dread?'. He too gave a signal, and a hundred dragonators rushed into sight, to match Dread's hundred Dramen.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Then “cry Havoc! And let slip the Dragons of War”!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Wait! I have a challenge: you and me, Dread, in one-on-one combat! To the victor, goes the Valley!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'I've already won, Dragon Fly; but I will accept your pathetic challenge. You choose the place; I choose the weapons'.   
Zenith answered: 'The places are this Valley, and our Dragons'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'The weapons are Zoomerangs, to the Death!': this was a sort of throwing-knife, meant to describe arcs and turn corners.  
For a few hours, therefore, Zenith practiced with a Zoomerang of his own, and hit one of the nearby trees on his first throw. Said Peak: 'Slam him, Zenith! You've still got the touch!'.   
Said Zenith: 'I was aiming at the other tree. I haven't used one of these in a long time. Too long!'.   
Said Peak: 'Then why challenge Dread Wing? He's a Master of the Zoomerang!'.   
Said Zenith: 'A war with Dread would kill many dragonators. Better that one of us be at risk, than all'.   
Said Peak: 'Whatever happens up there, Dread never gets this Valley!'; but Aaron answered: 'We will honor Zenith's challenge, Peak. No one interferes! Are we clear on that point, Dragon Flyz?'.   
Said Peak: 'Yes; as clear as Amber!', and Zenith mounted Riptor, to begin the duel.  
Said Dread to Nocturna: 'If Zenith ever gets the Upper Hand, you know what to do'.   
Said Nocturna: 'Yes: attack the humans with the full force of our troops'.   
Said Dread Wing: ‘Attack, and destroy! After I have eliminated Zenith, I grant you full control of this Valley. I have no use for such a place'.   
Said Nocturna: 'I have long dreamed of my own domain, to rule and do with as I pleased' (which, for her, usually meant eating every living thing in sight).   
Said Dread: 'Do not forget, Nocturna: you still serve me', and she answered: 'Of course, my Lord'.  
Said Zenith: 'How's that wing, Riptor? I'll need you in top form to beat Dread Wing. Blackheart's bigger, but you're faster!', and Riptor waved his wings experimentally; then spread them and flew, with Zenith on his back to say: 'Time to catch some wind!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Apex, Peak, and Summit, keep your Dragons ready'.   
Said Peak: '“Just in case”?', and Aaron confirmed: 'Just in case'.  
The duel began: Dread on Blackheart and Zenith on Riptor circled the Valley, each past the other, and neither took his eyes from his enemy. Dread threw his Zoomerang, and Zenith his, and both missed, and stopped to recover the weapons. With a roar, Blackheart charged our heroes, and Zenith called: 'Punch it, Riptor; he's right on our tail!'; whereupon Riptor fled. The other dragonators applauded Zenith and Riptor; but their cheer was darkened as Blackheart overflew them.   
Said Apex: 'Uh-oh! Blackheart's in the tail-position! Rough air ahead for Zenith!', and said Nocturna: 'That's it, Dread: keep them occupied, until I strike when they least expect it. Then the Valley, and everything in it, will be mine', and her stomach growled at the thought.   
Blackheart flew over a natural bridge, and Riptor under it; and Dread threw his boomerang around it, which caught Zenith upon the helm. Quoth he: 'I'm hit! Riptor: take us down to tree-level!'; and with a roar of agreement, Riptor plunged into the canopy, where Blackheart was too large and clumsy to follow him. Said Zenith: 'I'm not toasted yet, Dread'; and with that, Riptor emerged on Dread Wing's port side, and Zenith on the starboard, and flung his Zoomerang at Dread without warning. He missed again; but Dread threw his own at Zenith and Riptor, and he too missed, and the Zoomerang itself sank into the river. Said Zenith, on Riptor: 'It's over, Dread; you're beaten! Are you ready to yield?'.   
Dread Wing answered: 'Never, Zenith! I'm still a better pilot than you!'. With a laugh, Zenith answered: '–In your dreams, Mutant!'.   
Said Nocturna: 'Dread Wing is weaponless. He may have lost; but I have not. Follow me!', and rode Nightmare into the air, with the Dark Dramen on their own wings behind them.   
Now, Zenith and Dread Wing charged each-other on their Dragons. Zenith tossed his Zoomerang, and missed, and Blackheart's port wing tipped him backward from his saddle. Quoth Summit: 'Zenith is in Zero Drag! His exo-wings are damaged!'; and sure enough: Zenith fell, until he caught himself on a tree above the river. A horde of Gremwings filled the air, and Peak called: 'Look! The mutants are attacking!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Scramble the Dragonators! Defend the Valley at all costs!'. Immediately the dragonators took to the air on their exo-wings, and blasted the Dramen with their Windjammers. Dread and Blackheart swept upon Zenith, and most of the dragonators slew a Dramen each. Nocturna pursued Summit, and said: 'This Valley, is mine;–– no matter what I have to do to get it!'.   
Said Dread Wing to Zenith: 'You lose, Dragon Flyz!', and Blackheart flamed upon our hero; but Riptor snatched him out of the way, and the flames lit upon the tree instead. Alas! The trees and vines that covered the Valley, were too weak to withstand Blackheart's fiery breath; and within minutes, the whole Valley burned, and choked everyone with thick red smoke.   
Said Aaron: 'No! It can't happen, or the Valley will be destroyed!'; but he was too late, and the dragonators too widely scattered, to stop the fire. Protected by their rocky walls from the Cataclysm, and from the high temperatures and poisonous atmosphere of the land thereafter, the plants and animals were helpless before the flame, and turned instantly to ashes.  
A few Gremwings pursued Summit, and he turned in flight and destroyed them all; but the Valley was ablaze everywhere. Said Zenith: 'It's over, Dread Wing. Our reason for battle has gone up in smoke'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'As long as Airlandis does not bow to me, Zenith, our reason for battle will never perish. But that is a fight for another day', and rode Blackheart out of the Valley.   
A voice came over the communicators: 'Aaron to all Airlandis' troops: withdraw immediately! The battle is over'. Both sides retreated.   
Said Nocturna to Dread Wing: 'You destroyed my valley!', and he answered: 'Be careful, Nocturna; are you questioning my actions?'.   
Said she: 'Never!', and he answered: 'Good. It were most unfortunate if you did'.   
Said she: 'I won't take orders for ever, Dread'; but she followed him to Warnado.  
On Airlandis, the Sun had set, and the dragonators on their dragons were on their way home. Said Aaron: 'The real victims of War are always the Innocent. To-day we have lost a battle in our quest for a Home; but that doesn't mean we should lose hope. If this Lost Eden existed, there must be similar places, somewhere on Earth; and one day, we'll find them'.   
Sure enough, Apex had rescued a birds'-nest from the Valley as it burned; other dragonators had rescued more, and carried them into the Bio-Spheres, to share Airlandis' long quest for a Refuge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Zenith's mistake, of course, was in fighting on the very land contested. Both he and Dread neglected to remember, a land shielded from the Cataclysm would have no resistance whatever to lava-blasts. It goes to teach us all an important lesson. 
> 
> Dread's reputation of a pseudo-intellectual, is of course re-enforced by his quotation from Shakespeare's 'Tragedy of Julius Caesar'.
> 
> I added the remark on Nocturna 'eating everything in sight'; but what else would a carnivorous monster do with an Oasis, anyway? Any ideas?


	10. Le mont Alayas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the people of Airlandis almost discover a new home-place, only to have it spoiled by Dread again…

Some time after the loss of the underground oasis, a Skywatch officer sat playing a computer-game of Zenith and Riptor's fight with Dread and Blackheart, when Aaron asked him: 'Has the geo-simulation finished scanning the North-West Vector?’.   
Said Skywatch: 'It made its Preliminary Sweep, Sir: cinder and ash deposits, magma-pools, fissure-flows; the usual'.   
Said Aaron: 'The future of Airlandis could depend on this simulation! I need you to watch that Vector, very carefully'. Even as they spoke, a signal rang, and the simulator projected a new image.   
Said Aaron: 'It can't be. If these air-density readings are accurate, we've found it: we've found the Mount Alayas!'.   
Said Skywatch: 'But I thought that was just a legend!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Not anymore. Get the Dragon Flyz together! We must send out a reconnaissance team at once', and Skywatch did so. Before long, the Dragon Flyz were on their way.   
When they had been in the air awhile, Zenith ordered: 'Apex: check the co-ordinates. We've been searching for hours and found nothing'.   
Said Apex: 'This is the place; but I sense something strange in the air'.   
Said Peak: '“Strange”? How about “boring”? Come on, Summit: drag-race you to the Horizon!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'You're on!', and circumvented Peak and Wing-Storm on Sky-Fury.   
Said Peak: 'O yeah? Two can play at that jive-and-dive!', and rode Wing-Storm in and out of the clouds.   
Quoth Summit: 'Do you give up, Peak?', who called back: '“Give up”?! You know you can't keep a Good Man down!'. Summit on Sky-Fury drew ahead, and came upon the Mount Alayas.  
The Mount Alayas was a huge gathering of table-lands, high enough to overlook both the Warp Winds, and the cleaner clouds above. Their flat tops were green with grass and moss, golden with strange flowers, and large enough to hold all the people of Airlandis. Rivers ran over these plateaux, cold and crystal-clear; moths and butterflies decorated the banks; and the air was full of the songs of birds. Apex and Zenith hove into view on their Dragons, and inspected them. Said Peak: 'The last one to touch ground is a rotten Gremwing!', and rode Wing-Storm ever closer, with the others behind them. All four Dragons alighted in a green field gilded by golden blossoms, and their riders dismounted. Said Peak: 'I thought mirages were only seen in the Desert!'.   
Said Apex: 'It looks like a postcard;–– of Paradise!', and picked some flowers to smell. Three Gremwings saw them, and reported all to Nocturna.   
When the Dragon Flyz returned, Aaron announced: 'Citizens of Airlandis! We now have confirmation of the existence of a formerly undiscovered and uncharted land-mass, which I believe to be the legendary mountain-range: Mount Alayas'.   
Apex coughed upon the pollen of its flowers, and Peak asked: 'Are you O.K., Sis?'.   
Quoth she: 'Yes; hard ride. A little drag-lag; that's all'.   
Said Joshua: 'Aaron tells me: we are close enough, to reach the Alayas by strato-glider. So I propose: we initiate a volunteer settlement program, immediately!', and the people cheered.   
Said Aaron, aside: 'No, Josh. We haven't properly secured the region. It's too soon to send the first settlers!'.   
Said Joshua: 'Who better to ensure their safety, than your own flesh-and-blood: the Dragon Flyz?'.   
The volunteers gathered at the Council's doors, and Joshua called to them: 'Everyone, please! Calm down! By decree of the Council: we'll draw lots for the first wave of settlers!'.  
When the settlers were chosen, the Dragon Flyz led the way, and the strato-gliders followed them, with the colonists aboard, to a safe landing upon the Mount Alayas. Each dragonator led a single strato-glider to the floor, and laughed to see them land; but Apex's follower came, as she said, 'too close to the trees!', and broke his starboard wing against them. His strato-glider nearly fell from the table-lands altogether; but Apex shot a grappling-iron into the hull, and arrested the fall. Said she: 'We've got them!', and Zenith answered: 'Not for long', and took to the air on his exo-wings. He tried the door of the aircraft; but it stayed shut, and he called to the passengers: 'The door is jammed! Stand back!', and shot it open with his Windjammer. Said he: 'Come on. Let's get you to Solid Ground', and the passengers disembarked. Last in line came a boy and his mother (the very boy, in fact, whose ball had been stolen by Nocturna, when she captured Fury's egg). Apex took the boy in her own arms, and stood him safely on the floor; but his mother fell backward into the strato-glider, when it fell from the table-land into the sky. Zenith leapt after her, and bore her to safety on his exo-wings. Everyone applauded; but Nocturna on Nightmare had seen it all. Said she: 'How touching! Dread Wing will be most interested to see that Expedition!', and rode to Warnado, to tell him.  
On Mount Alayas, the Airlandians erected domes of gold, in which to live, and arranged them into a little town, on the banks of a stream. In the midst of building, one of the welders called: 'No! Stop! Please! Don't!', and fired his heat-ray in all the wrong directions.   
Said Zenith: 'What's going on here?!'; and when the welder aimed his heat-ray at some other colonists, Zenith knocked him down. Afterward, a doctor said: 'I've known Dax, here, for 15 years, and I've never even known him to raise his voice, let alone a weapon!’.  
Said Zenith: 'Doctor: could Dread Wing have done this?', and the doctor answered: 'I scanned him: no neurological changes. His blood-chemistry is fine! If it's Dread Wing behind this, I have no idea of how he's doing it!'.   
As the Sun set that eve, some colonists unloaded the last strato-glider, and Peak tried to talk a handsome woman into his own company; but her face seemed to change into that of a monster, and he fled. All she said, was: 'What a strange boy!'.   
In the midst of the new town, Zenith studied some of the golden flowers, which grew everywhere on Alayas, and seemed to see himself pour sabotage into an engine. Said he, with his Windjammer drawn: 'Hey, you! Stop and put your hands up!'; but the doppelganger turned to him instead, and its face became that of a Shark. Zenith backed down, and tried to seize the invader; but it evaporated without a trace. When he rose and looked for it, Peak bumped into him, and said: 'There was this girl… but she wasn't a girl… I mean: she was, and then she wasn't! You have to believe me!'. Said Zenith: 'I believe you. What I don't believe is what's happening here! I think it's time we put in a call to the Council'; and so they did. When they heard the news, Aaron and Joshua argued over the right answer to the problem.   
Said Aaron: 'We've got to bring them back, now!'.   
Said Joshua: '“Bring them back”? For what reason? Nothing in Zenith's report could be substantiated. Do you have any idea of how much is riding, on the success of this Expedition?!'.   
Said Aaron: 'But they could be in grave danger!'.   
Said Joshua: 'There's no problem here, except disagreement. If there's danger, that's what your Dragon Flyz are for! Tell them to handle it!', and left the room.   
Meanwhile, Dread Wing on Blackheart approached the Mount Alayas; and behind them came Nocturna on Nightmare, Fryte on Skunk, and a horde of Gremwings. On the Mount Alayas, the welders and carpenters were still at work, when Peak saw the invaders. Said he to his brothers and sister: 'Dread Wing, at 9.00!'.   
Said Zenith: 'I knew when we lifted the rock we'd find Dread under it! Dragon Flyz, maximize!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'The Sun is setting on the Dragon Flyz, and rising on the New Ruler of Airlandis!' (by which, as usual, he meant himself).   
Peak settled upon Wing-Storm, who roared and flew; but when Summit approached Sky-Fury, he saw a horror in her place: a flat-faced two-headed dragon, larger even than Blackheart. He backed away in fright, until the others caught him. Apex asked: 'What's wrong with Summit!', and Zenith answered: 'No time to find out. We've got to stop Dread before he gets to the Settlement!'.  
Peak and Wing-Storm were first into the air, and Peak shot down the foremost Gremwings. Zenith mounted Riptor; but Apex screamed in terror, for it seemed to her that the skin had dried upon her hands and face, and begun to fall apart. Zenith called: 'It's not true, Apex! You're just fine!', and she saw he was right.   
Dread Wing laughed, and shot plasma-blasts at Zenith and Riptor, with the remark: 'Swallow your horror and get ready to scream!'. Riptor evaded Dread's shots, and Zenith fired his Windjammer, but missed; and Dread scored upon Riptor. Each Dragon passed the other, and turned back to rejoin battle; but when Zenith raised his Windjammer again, Dread seemed to become the shark-faced image Zenith had seen, and our hero hesitated. Peak unseated Fryte, and turned on Nocturna; but her face became that of the monster he saw, and he too paused. Said Dread Wing: 'Dragons! I am part of you. We share scale, not human skin. So heed my words! Your human allies have surrendered to me. Set down at once! Or they will be destroyed', and the Dragons set down. Said Dread Wing: 'Well! It looks like we've netted some Dragon Flyz for our collection!'.  
Once on the Alayas, Dread bound his prisoners in a half-finished building, and had Gangrene inspect their cargo. Said Gangrene: 'This is most excellent, Dread Wing: munitions, L.A.S.E.R. welders, raw plastic-steel, and food-replicators!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'O, but we have something much more valuable than that, Gangrene; we have something Airlandis will want back so badly, they'll have no choice but to trade their city for it'. With that, he said into Zenith's communicator: 'Airlandis! This is Dread Wing. I have captured your settlement and the Dragon Flyz! I will meet with only two Council leaders to negotiate their release: Aaron and Joshua. There is a price to pay, for Paradise!'.   
On Airlandis, Joshua said: 'It appears, Aaron, that the Dragon Flyz have not only cost us Mount Alayas, but compromised the safety of Airlandis as well!'. Aaron said nothing.   
It is likely that Dread Wing chose these particular councillors, because they seldom agreed on anything; at any rate, he soon had his way. The Dragons were bound in neck-stocks and chains, and could not save their riders; and Dread had the Dragon Flyz tied to the incomplete walls. Said Fryte: 'Destroy them now, Dread Wing!'.   
Dread answered: 'No! Not until we trap Aaron; then, Alayas and Airlandis will be ours'.   
On Airlandis, Dram and Shockfire made ready to carry Aaron and Joshua. Said Zarkan: 'Aaron, we're going with you. A dragonator takes care of its own!'; but Aaron answered: 'No, Zarkan; Dread Wing will kill the prisoners if he sees anyone other than Joshua and me'.   
Said Joshua: 'What's in the pack, Aaron? I forbid you, to endanger these negotiations with weapons!'.   
Said Aaron: 'It's simply some medical supplies and provisions. I assure you: no weapons'. He mounted Shockfire behind Dram and Joshua, and the dragon, with a moan of reluctance, bore them to the Mount Alayas. When they arrived, night had fallen, and the golden flowers that covered the Mount Alayas, had become silver and blue; and so they stayed until after dawn. Aaron and Joshua dismounted, and Aaron said: 'Thank you, Dram; now leave us'. With a salute, Dram and his dragon did so. The two ambassadors found no-one at first, and said: 'Where are they? Something's wrong!'; but behind them came Nocturna, and before them came Fryte, and pointed to the half-finished building in which Dread waited with the prisoners. They found him within, and Joshua said: 'Dread Wing: we've honoured our side of the bargain!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'That's because you are honorable men. I, on the other hand, am neither. You will immediately surrender Airlandis to me, or the hostages will die!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Let the others go; take me instead!'; and Dread answered: 'I never understood the concept of Sacrifice; but since you offer yourself so willingly, I will take you up on your offer, and you can die with the others!'; but a rescue was at hand: down leapt Dram from the unfinished roof, and stunned Fryte and Nocturna with his Windjammer. Dread Wing spread his wings and fled.   
Aaron, Joshua, and Dram left the half-finished building, and Aaron set up a microscope-computer to study the plants of Alayas. Nocturna came upon them; but Dram's face seemed to change for that of Dread Wing, and she retreated. Fryte and the Gremwings came upon them; but something frightened Fryte, and he shot the Gremwings by mistake.   
Said Joshua: 'What's the matter with them? It's as if they've all gone mad! They're firing on their own troops!'.   
Said Aaron: 'They've also left us an opening; come!', and freed the Dragon Flyz. Said he to them: 'Put this filter on! The air is the true enemy, here. Remember: don't lift your gas-masks! Your lives, and the lives of everyone on Airlandis, depends on it!'. With that, he unloaded enough air-filters for every settler, and Joshua gave each its own. Thus protected, Aaron, Joshua, and the dragonators prepared to depart; but Blackheart flamed upon them, to stop their progress. They escaped in spite of him, and freed their Dragons; Zenith ordered: 'Dragon Flyz, maximize!', and all the Airlandians fled on dragon-back. Four Gremwings surrounded Summit, but Peak shot them all. Dread on Blackheart pursued them further, and the Flyz turned against them; Zenith took to the air on his exo-wings, and it seemed to Dread that Zenith grew as large as a mountain. Said Zenith: 'Dread Wing, the fight is over!', and said Dread Wing: 'We can't fight that! Retreat! Retreat! Nocturna! Fryte! Return to Warnado!'. Gangrene was almost left behind; but Skunk picked him up, and all the Dreadnoughts followed Dread Wing's orders in a hurry. Said Zenith: 'You should stop and smell the flowers; but I guess you already did'.  
Dawn broke over the Mount Alayas just as the Dragon Flyz returned there, and the colonists applauded them. Said Zenith: 'No, no: you have our Father to thank, for to-day's victory'.   
Said Aaron: 'Yes, but it was your fears that gave me the answer, Zenith. The beauty of these flowers [which still covered the Mount Alayas] is deceptive, and deadly. It seems the flora of Mount Alayas secrete a scent that affects the neurons of the human brain, and gives rise to our inner-most fears'.   
Quoth Summit: 'That's why we saw what we saw;–– and what we feared!'.   
Said Apex: 'But how could we settle here, then?'.   
Said Aaron: 'We can't. Further exposure would prove lethal! I'm sorry; but we must leave the Mount Alayas at once. For us, Alayas must remain a legend, never to be realized'.   
Once back on Airlandis, Joshua said: 'I know I pushed the plan, Aaron; and for that, I am sorry. In my own way, I may want to find the home-place more than anyone!'.   
Said Aaron: 'We all want that, Joshua; and one day, our feet will walk on Solid Ground. But in the meantime: the air Up Here smells especially sweet, to-day'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Theoretically, of course, the science of Airlandis could devise a vaccine against the poisonous plants of Mount Alayas; but as long as Dread stands between Airlandis and Earth, such devices are a waste of effort. Still, I agree with other fanfic authors, Alayas deserves a second chance.
> 
> Note: the 'golden flower' or 'golden rose' is an alchemical symbol, and therefore found in fiction everywhere. The poisonous plants of Alayas, are not doubt a variation of this image.


	11. The Scavenger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Airlandis experiments with an alternative to dragons, and Dread Wing is quick to exploit it…

Some time later, Airlandis ran its crystal-cycle once more, and the Dragon Flyz descended to replenish her supply. As usual, they flew down the Wind Pits; and this time, emerged into the desert. Peak and Wing-Storm, according to their custom, flew a little behind the others. Said Zenith: 'Keep in close, Flyz; no slacking! This run is too important’.  
Peak called to their fifth dragonator: 'Zenith's not talking about me;–– is he, Aemod?', and rode on, in leaps and twirls.   
Said Zenith: 'I saw that move, Peak; now back in formation and surf up for the snatch-and-grab!'. Wing-Storm twirled ahead, and Aemod complained to his own dragon: 'Come on, Typhon, why can't you do that?'; but Typhon only roared in answer.   
Said Apex: 'Treat Typhon with Respect, Aemod, and he'll give you everything he's got! Push him too hard, and you'll lose him for good'.   
Said Aemod: 'I have my fist; that's the only thing dragons understand'. Apex frowned, and Typhon roared his disagreement and flew on.   
The five dragonators rode low over the lava. At length, Zenith said: 'It's drop-and-shop: one crystal for each of us! You know the Drill; so let's get to it, and keep Airlandis in the Air!'.  
Riptor, Blazewind, and Sky-Fury took a crystal each; but Typhon and Aemod raised a lava-beast instead: much like the one the others killed to rescue Peak, but larger still, which chased them a short while, until it tired. Aemod and Typhon rejoined the others, beyond the monster's reach, where Aemod unfairly upbraided his dragon: 'Thanks for the toast-drop, Typhon!', who complained in return. Blazewind and Wing-Storm took up the complaint, and even Riptor gave Aemod a look of disapproval (which moved him not at all). Said Peak: 'Hey Aemod! Looks like the barbecue's at your place tonight!'; but Aemod gave him no answer. 

On they flew; and Zenith said: 'Back in cover-formation, Flyz! Let's head home before something else tries to chomp on us'. Homeward they turned; but the Dark Dramen of the Lowlands watched them go, and so too did Nocturna and Nightmare. Said Nocturna: 'They flew right into our trap! The Dragon Flyz' hunger for crystals will be their down-fall'. As Riptor flew past them, the foremost Dramen fired their plasma-blasters on him, and missed. Said Zenith: 'Dark Dramen in the pipes, Dragon Flyz!', and Riptor circled back upon his path.   
Now the Dramen fired on the other Flyz, and missed again. Riptor and Zenith resumed the lead. Ahead of them came more Dramen on their dragons, with plasma-blasters raised. Said Zenith: 'Roll out, now! Make the Dramen chase you!', and followed his own orders first. A Dramen pursued him on dragon-back, and Zenith fired his Windjammer at him, but missed; and the Dramen seized the crystal Riptor still carried, with a grappling-iron. Said Zenith: 'No! Not the crystal!'; but the Dramen only laughed, and departed. Nocturna did the same to Wing-Storm; and when he refused to release the crystal, scorched his talons with a plasma-blast. Said Peak to the others: 'Dragon Flyz: watch your claws! The Dark Dramen aren't after us; they're after the crystals!'.   
Another Dark Dramen rode abreast of Summit; but when he fired his blaster, Summit took to the air on his exo-wings (by which means, the plasma-blast missed both him and Fury), and knocked the Dramen from his saddle. Even thus, Fury could not stop another Dramen and dragon, who seized the crystal she bore and hid in a Wind Pit.   
Typhon and Aemod pursued him, and Zenith called: 'Aemod! Hold your position; do not pursue!'. Typhon stopped on a rock, and Aemod telephoned back: 'Why can't we follow them, Zenith? They stole our Ambers! Airlandis needs those Crystals!'.   
Said Zenith: 'It's obvious they had a plan. Those tunnels in the Wind Pit are like a maze: you could get lost, and never find your way out'.   
Said Peak: 'And our dragons are lagging! No way could we hold up an extended wing-jam with Tired Mounts!'.   
Said Aemod: 'Tired or not, they're here to serve us; not the other way around!'. Typhon roared his disagreement, and all four other dragons did the same, until even their riders were afraid.   
Said Zenith: 'This isn't the place for this discussion! Let's get home! These dragons deserve a little Rest and Relaxation'. So home they went. 

On Warnado, Fryte presented the stolen crystals to Dread Wing, who said: 'Excellent; my plan worked to perfection' (though it had not been his plan).   
Said Fryte: 'Yes, Dread Wing! The Dragon Flyz retreated! They will not be back'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Of course they'll be back, you fool! Because they need the Amber Crystals. Their hunger for Amber is insatiable'. He rose, and broke one of the crystals with a grappling-iron, and said: 'With this! I shall pluck the Ambers from them until the Dragon Flyz starve to death'. 

On Airlandis, Aaron addressed to the Dragon Flyz: 'These new weapons are a Very Serious Concern. You now have a dual responsibility: to navigate your dragons, and to protect the Amber Crystals'.   
Said Zenith: 'I know they got the upper hand this time, Father; but next time we'll be ready!'.   
Said Joshua: 'Can we afford a “next time”?', and Aaron answered: 'I was going to hold off announcing this; but now I have no choice, but to reveal our latest aero-prototype: the Scavenger!'.   
Said Joshua, over the intercom: 'Orac! Set up the Scavenger on the launch-strip, and prepare it for immediate dust-off!'.   
Said Orac: 'It's about time you cowboys ride into the 42nd Century!', and obeyed.   
The Scavenger itself was a new aircraft: rather like the strato-gliders, but stronger and more maneuverable. When Zenith saw it, he asked: 'What are we supposed to do with that?!'.   
Said Aaron: 'The Scavenger is strictly back-up: a fail-safe, in case the dragons are ever incapacitated'; but Orac added: '–Or just plain incompetent! With this baby, you won't need to fly through the Wind Pits anymore. You can just make a shortcut, right through the Warp Winds!'.   
Said Joshua: 'If she's skyworthy, let's give her a test! Any volunteers?'.   
Said Aemod: 'Let me be the first! Let me take her out! It's about time we stopped dragging our feet'.   
Said Orac: 'Aemod, suit up! But it's not a test I want; it's a contest! Like the steam-engine against horsepower, it's the Scavenger against dragon-power! Any takers?'.   
One answered: 'Dragonator Peak, ready to zing some Scavenger wing!'.   
Said Apex to herself: 'The dragons aren't going to like this'.  
Aemod launched the Scavenger, in graceful arcs and loops-upon-loops. Wing-Storm launched himself, with Peak on his back; flew a loop of his own; and drew abreast of them. Said Peak over the communicator: 'It's going to take more than a slick move to impress me, Aemod. You're just blowing smoke! Now let's burn some wing'. Aemod accelerated, and lost sight of Peak and Wing-Storm; but they were above him in no time. Said Peak: 'You bet, Storm: we're going to flash-and-trash that hunk of flying metal, and send it back to Orac's drawing-board!'.   
In flew Dread Wing on Blackheart, and Nocturna on Nightmare, who said: 'Master, look: What is that? It can't be a dragon'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Much better, Nocturna; it's a dragon of steel! A flying machine!'. He laughed, apropos of his name, most dreadfully, and added: 'What I could do, with such a machine! The worlds I could conquer!'.   
However fast the Scavenger flew, Wing-Storm was right behind her, and often above. To escape his competitor, Aemod flew among the towers of Airlandis; but Wing-Storm and Peak flew down the runway; off again; and straight upward along some of the towers; and Aemod almost crashed into the Council Chamber. He swerved from it, and nearly threw Wing-Storm and Peak from the sky; both complained, and all the Dragons bellowed. Down swept Wing-Storm after Aemod: over the other Dragons, who bellowed still; past the startled Skywatch; and down upon the runway, where his wings became entangled again, and the two of them spun around themselves nine times along the floor, and came to a disorderly stop. Peak was thrown from his back, and Wing-Storm himself pulled a face where he lay. Said Peak: 'Talk to me, Storm! Are you all right?', and raced to his side; but Riptor and Blazewind interposed themselves in his path.   
Said Peak: 'Wing-Storm! Are you O.K.?' and when Wing-Storm did not answer, added: 'Apex, can you open them up? Can you find out what's wrong?'.   
Said Apex: 'The Dragons are closing me out, Peak; I can feel it! They think we're putting them out to pasture; they think we're getting rid of them'. Behind her, Aemod landed the Scavenger.   
Said Peak: '“Getting rid of them”?! Can't you make them understand? Can't you explain it to them?'.   
Said Aemod: 'Why waste time explaining it to them? The Scavenger is faster, stronger, and more reliable than a scale-back ever could be!'. Typhon roared upon him, and every Dragon left Airlandis at once.   
Peak asked: 'Where are they going?', and Apex answered: 'I don't need to read their minds to tell you: they're angry! Can't you feel their rage? The Scavenger hurt one of them; they're just protecting their own! I'm telling you, Peak: they're leaving us'.   
Said Peak: '“Leaving”?! But they can't; we need them!'. This was true; but every dragon left Airlandis, and only one gave even a backward glance: this was Wing-Storm, who went last, and to whom Peak called: 'Wing-Storm! Don't go! Without you and the other dragons, Airlandis is doomed!'. At this, Wing-Storm looked at the others, scolded Peak, and left. 

Without the dragons, Airlandis was desolate, and a cold mist blew over the city and hovered over its people's souls. Skywatch watched in vain for the dragons to return. As the day turned into afternoon, Team One boarded the Scavenger, and set off for the world below.   
Within the Warp Winds, Apex complained: 'We must be out of our minds! The Warp Winds will tear us apart! The Scavenger will be shredded into scrap-metal!'.   
Said Zenith: 'I don't like this any more than you do, Apex, but we've got to get those Crystals to-night! With the dragons gone, this is our only option'.   
Said Aemod: 'Hold on: here we go!', and flew the Scavenger into the storm. The controls were nearly pulled from his grip, and Zenith called: 'Aemod! Pull the pin! Get us out!'.   
Said Aemod: 'I'm trying! It's too strong!'; and with a final acceleration, he burst free of the Warp Winds into the lower atmosphere.   
Said Peak: 'Next time, I'll pass on the roller-coaster-ride'.   
Quoth Summit: 'That makes two of us'.   
Said Zenith: 'We'll go for the Amber and get back home'.   
Said Aemod: 'We're coming up on the reconnaissance site; everybody keep your eyes wide open!'.  
The Scavenger flew low over the streams of lava, and Apex pointed out 'at least three Crystals on our starboard flank!'.   
Said Aemod: 'Sharp scouting, Apex; I see them!', and turned hard a-starboard.   
Said Zenith: 'Aemod: start your snatch-and-grab'.   
Said Aemod: 'I'm on it; going into drag-dive right now! Opening retrieval-claws', and did so, but caught nothing. Said he: 'Just a dress-rehearsal. Coming in for another trial!'.   
Said Peak: 'I don't remember a dragon ever needing a dress-rehearsal', and Summit hummed his agreement. Aemod dragged the lava again, and caught two crystals. Said he: 'Got them! Just took a little practice'; but at that moment, a plasma-blast assailed his windscreen, and more followed.   
Said Zenith: 'We've been flashed!'.   
Said Peak: 'On our port wing, fast!'; but the enemy was all around them, and Blackheart flashed them again with his fiery breath. Said Dread Wing: 'Fire the grappling-guns, now!', and Nocturna grappled the Scavenger's starboard wing, while Fryte grappled the port.   
Said Aemod: 'The controls are jammed!', and Blackheart flashed them again.   
Said Zenith: 'We have to abandon the Scavenger! Abort!'.  
Blackheart flashed them again, until the hull was nearly molten, and the Airlandians leapt through a hatch in its underside. Said Dread Wing: 'The Dragon Flyz have abandoned their machine! The steel dragon is mine!'.   
Our heroes fell freely for a little while; then caught themselves on their exo-wings, and looked back at the captive Scavenger, which now hung tethered between Skunk and Nightmare. Dread Wing alighted upon it; broke its windscreen; and took the controls, and the other mutants released it. With the controls jammed, Dread had no easy task to pilot the unhappy machine: its port wing scored upon a mountain, and he nearly collided with another, but drew himself free, and over it. Said he: 'Now I have mastered the mechanical monster, let's find out where the Dragon Flyz have scurried! Blackheart: find the humans!', who at that moment were upon another outcrop of stone, where Peak said: 'My exo-wings can't carry us much further! We'll never make it back to Airlandis!'.   
Said Zenith: 'We'll have to worry about that later! For now, let's get up the mountain! Take cover in that cave, until we find a way to get home'. Apex's mind reached for the Dragons, and found them. Dread Wing brought the Scavenger to the mountain-top, just as the Airlandians ascended it, and fired its Windjammers on them. They fled around the mountain on their exo-wings, with Dread in hot pursuit; but on one side was Blackheart, and on the other were Fryte and Nocturna on their dragons.   
Our heroes were surrounded, and Dread was about to destroy them when Peak said: 'Look! The dragons! They're back!'; and sure enough, they were. In a trice, Dread Wing's evil plan was confounded. Riptor and Sky-Fury gave the Scavenger a mighty kick each, and Riptor another, and sent it in the wrong direction.   
Said Zenith: 'Dragon Flyz, maximize!'. Nocturna shot her grapple at him, but he rose on his exo-wings and settled on Riptor's back. His brothers, sister, and comrade did the same, on their own dragons. Said Zenith: 'Time to show Dread, and the Scavenger, who rules the skies: we Dragon Flyz'.   
At that, Riptor flew abreast of Dread Wing's starboard bow, and Sky-Fury to port; and both dragons grasped the wings of the Scavenger, and drove it headlong against another mountain, where it shattered into millions of pieces. Dread Wing escaped, but the Scavenger was destroyed, and the Flyz were reconciled with their Dragons.   
Said Dread Wing: 'You haven't won yet, Dragon Flyz! I'll make you pay, with your lives!', and flew away.   
On a spur of rock above the lava-flows, settled the dragons, and Aemod said: 'Typhon: I wanted to thank you for saving me; for saving all of us, and I'm sorry I was harsh to you and your kind. I acted like a Real Fool'. Typhon roared his agreement, and the other dragons seconded his forgiveness.   
Said Apex: 'The dragons are our partners, Aemod, not our slaves; and I think they proved that, to-day'.   
Said Zenith: 'O.K., Flyz; let's haul these crystals to Airlandis!', and so they did.   
Quoth Summit, near Airlandis: 'So, who's going to tell Orac we had to destroy his pride-and-joy?'.   
Said Peak: 'I'm ready to give Orac some flack'. Meanwhile, all the dragons returned to Airlandis.

On Warnado, Dread Wing found Nocturna on the throne, and said: ‘Nocturna! get out of my chair! I think I command a bit more Respect'.   
Said she: 'I think you confuse Respect, with Fear!'.   
Dread sat, and said: 'Leave me, Nocturna; the world is turning fast into to-morrow, and I want to sleep, and dream of new horrors yet unimagined, for Dragon Flyz'; for he had learnt nothing from this latest misadventure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be continued…
> 
> Normally, I dislike 'scenes a faire', such as form the second act of this chapter; but it was part of this history and could not be avoided.


	12. A Dreadful Alliance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our next story tells of how Dram, the Dramen who fought for Airlandis, came to live on that city; and of how he was reminded of his origins…

The next chapter begins on an ordinary day in Airlandis, with the Dragon Flyz ordered 'to tactical support, for Operation Crystal Run'. Apex arose on her exo-wings, and her brothers followed on theirs. The Dragons rose from their eyries. Team One took the elevators to the runway; Dram, Zarkan, and Nora leapt from the edge of Airlandis. All said: 'Dragon Flyz, maximize!'; and three teams of dragonators settled onto the Dragons.   
Said Zenith: 'On me, Dragon Flyz', and Riptor led the way, with the others in arrow-formation. Said Zenith: 'I want this run picture-perfect;––got it?'.   
A little further, Apex called: 'There's the Wind Pit!', and Zenith answered: 'That's a lock, Apex. Single file, dragonators; trail my tail. It's going to be one of those maze-days'. With that, the Dragons aligned themselves. Peak answered: 'Then let's be amazing!'; and all descended, with roars, through the tunnels onto the ruined land below.   
They flew some distance over the ground, until Summit called: 'Wing right, Flyz; the Amber's at the edge of this forest!'; but they all, and especially Dram, noticed a thick red smoke on the rise from a clearing. Said Dram: 'Zenith, I request drag-dive to investigate that smoke'.   
Said Zenith: 'Negative. We're hot on the trail of some easy-Amber; that takes priority-one, now'.   
Dram answered: 'My people are of priority, Zenith; I cannot abandon them!', and rode his Dragon to investigate.   
Said Zenith to the others: 'Anyone have a clue of what he's talking about?'.   
Peak said: 'I never know what he's talking about' (which was not quite true); but Apex offered: 'Dram said: “his people”; there must be a Dramen village down there'.   
Said Zenith: 'You're right, Apex; and where there's smoke, there's fire. If things are getting hot, Dread must have something cooking', and turned Riptor after Dram and Titan. All the formation followed suit.   
On the ground, Dram found the Dramen village in flames, and heard no survivors. He discovered a Dramen's foot-print and some familiar-looking darts; and Peak said, behind him: 'Some cook-out! This is a third-degree flash-and-trash!’.  
Said Zenith: 'Dread Wing; who else would lay waste a village like that for no reason?'.   
Said Apex: 'I've never seen anything like it!'.   
Dram answered: 'I have, in a place I knew long ago'; for when he was small, and before the others of Team One were born, Dram had lived in a village much like this. One night, the Dark Dramen came on their brown dragons and burned every building to the ground; and only Dram escaped alive. He was surrounded by the fire, like the others; but Aaron of Airlandis saved him. That was, as Joshua said, a long time ago, when Aaron's legs were still strong. With all the other Dramen burned to ashes, and their village with them, Dram went with Aaron to Airlandis, and had lived there ever since. Now, he showed Apex the dart and said: 'Do you see this?'.   
She asked: 'What is it?', and he answered: 'A Dramen arrow. Dread Wing did not attack this village; it was Dark Dramen, some 50 or 60 strong, or more'.   
Said Peak: 'You sure? This could be some sort of accident!'.   
Said Dram: 'This was no accident. The Dark Dramen always attack from above. See how the tree-tops are scorched? That's how they mark their territory. The Dramen villagers not killed, were captured!'.   
Said Zenith: 'I'm sorry, Dram; but there's nothing to do here. Let's saddle up! We have a mission to complete'.   
Apex seconded him: 'The villagers are gone, Dram; there's nothing for you here'. S  
Said Peak: 'Hey Dram! Are you coming with us?'.   
Said Dram: 'Negative. It is long since I lived in such a village; but they are still my people, and need me!'.   
Said Peak: 'And you need me, and you've got me. I'm nailed to your tail, Big D.!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Hold it! You two aren't going anywhere. We have an Emergency Crystal Run, remember?'.   
Peak answered: 'How can I forget?!'; but Dram took Zenith's hand and said: 'Zenith: you and the Dragon Flyz are my family; but the Dramen are my people! This I must do'. With that, he mounted his dragon and rode away. Said Peak: 'Good luck to you, Dram', and rejoined the others to search for Crystals.   
On Titan, Dram flew on, until the Dark Dramen espied him. They rose behind him on their brown dragons, with dart-guns raised, and showered their darts upon him. Titan flew almost to the ground; then rose, and wheeled upon the enemy. Two fell; but the third unseated Dram with a Zoomerang, and he fell senseless into the forest, where his dragon could not find him, and bellowed distress over the mountains.   
On Airlandis, Orac and his assistants unloaded the spent crystals from the Reactor, and installed the new crystals in their places. Said Orac to Zenith: 'Do you know how close we were to the Reactor shutting down?! Did you decide to take the Scenic Route?!'.   
Said Zenith: 'You needed crystals, and we got crystals. I did my job, Orac; now why don't you do yours?'. This was most unlike Zenith, and Orac wondered: 'Did I say something wrong?'.  
On the runway, Apex and Peak still sat on their dragons, with Riptor beside them. Said Peak: 'This is wrong; we should never have left Dram'.   
Said Apex: 'There was no choice, Peak'.   
Peak answered: 'I'm not so sure'; but at that moment, Zenith mounted Riptor (who complained) and said: 'Let's hit the skies, Flyz. Dram needs us'. With that, he took off, and Summit on Sky-Fury followed him. Said Peak: 'Now you're talking, Bro. Dragon Flyz, mobilize!', and Wing-Storm took to the sky, with Apex on Blazewind behind. Soon all of them were under way.   
On Old Earth, one Dark Dramen said: 'It is around here somewhere; I saw him fall'. The other answered: 'There he is!', and both alighted before Dram. He awoke, and knocked them down, then went into the forest himself. After a while he came upon the villagers in a cage, with Dark Dramen on guard around them; so he clomb into a tree, and followed the branches to a tree-house, where he heard Nocturna say: 'Your attack on the Dramen village was swift, and vicious: two qualities that will impress Dread Wing very much!'. To whom she spoke, was the chief of the Dark Dramen, who answered: 'You know, Nocturna, the Dark Dramen under my command would be a Valuable Addition to Dread Wing's forces. But can I trust you to tell him that?'.   
Said Nocturna: '“Trust me”? Of course; but you'll be able to tell him yourself, when he arrives to take charge of your prisoners!'.   
The Dark Chief answered: 'My camp?! To-day?!', and said Nocturna: 'Catch a chill, Vydak? You're shaking! (In excitement, or fear?)'. Vydak (for such was the Chief's name) left the house, with Nocturna beside him, and said: 'I fear no one!', and went on; but Dram followed them.  
At the feet of the trees stood the cage, with the villagers within. To them came Dram, and said: 'Do not be afraid. I come to help you!'. With that, he descended to their prison's door; and saying: 'Trust me! I am like you!', opened the cage. Said he: 'Quickly! Come with me!'.   
One of the prisoners answered: 'There are too many of them!'. Another added: 'It is no use! They are fighters; we are not!'.   
Said Dram: 'Then you must become fighters, and fight for your freedom!'.   
A elder said: 'If Dramen blood runs in your veins, you know we cannot resort to violence! We are a peaceful people; we must accept our Fate!'.   
Said Dram: 'It is because Dramen blood runs in my veins, I cannot be a slave! Hope alone cannot set you free; now go! It is your only chance! Go! I will protect you!'; but a Dark Dramen smote him down. Said the elder: 'Your weapon is useless! You must accept your Fate; it is the Dramen way'.  
Dread Wing on Blackheart arrived later that day, with Nocturna, Vydak, and the Dark Dramen to receive them. Said Vydak: 'Welcome to my camp, Lord Dread Wing'; but Dread answered: 'Enough of small talk! [though it really was not]. Where are the slaves you promised me?!'.   
Said Vydak: 'They're here; awaiting their Master's arrival! But I have something better'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'The only thing “better” would be “deader”', and said Vydak: 'As you will it, so it shall be. Bring out the prisoner!', and his sergeants obeyed.   
Said Dread Wing: 'A dragonator! Why, Vydak, you've out-done yourself!'.  
Elsewhere, the other Dragon Flyz came in search of Dram, on their dragons. At length, Summit called: 'Look! It's Dram's dragon!', who roared the news and rejoined the others. All the dragons gathered in the air to speak, and Peak said: 'Something must have happened to Dram! Can you make out what she's saying?', to Apex, who listened. Said she: 'She says: Dram is a prisoner of the Dark Dramen'.   
Said Zenith: 'Dragon Flyz; in formation! Dram's drag is going to take us right to him! Let's go!', and Riptor followed Titan, with the others beside him.   
At the prison, Dread Wing said: 'So good of you to join us, Dram! A dragonator's just what we need to stir up the lava, and add some excitement to the mixture'. With that, two Dark Dramen threw Dram into a second cage, and he said: 'I won't tell you anything'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'I don't want you to talk! I want you to fight!'.   
Said Dram: '“Fight”? With whom?'. The challenger entered, and Vydak answered: 'Orc: the most powerful Dramen warrior ever to fight on Old Earth!'; this was a tall, strong Dramen, with heavy spiked braces on his ponderous limbs.   
Said Dramen: 'What if I defeat him?', and Dread Wing answered: 'I'll tell Vydak to release the prisoners;–– right into the lava-pool'.   
Said Vydak: 'Let the Combat begin!'.  
Elsewhere, the Dragon Flyz followed Titan to the edge of the forest, and continued on foot. Said Peak: 'I hope we're not too late', and all four drew their Windjammers.   
In the second cage, Orc swung a fist at Dram, and Dram swung his own at Orc; both missed, and Orc swung his head and knocked Dram down. Dram tried to escape; but Orc flung him against a ledge, above the lava at the bottom of the cage. Dram fell off; but spread his wings and flew, and Orc spread his own wings to meet him, and smote him from the air. The Dragon Flyz saw this from afar, and Apex said: 'Dram's being forced to fight!’.  
Peak added: 'Check out the lovely couple at ring-side!', and pointed out Dread Wing and Vydak.   
Said Dread Wing: 'You have seen these Dark Dramen in Action, Nocturna; what do you think of them?'.   
Said Nocturna: 'They are crude, violent, and brutal; just my type!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Excellent. If I am to conquer Airlandis I will need an army of savages to fight at my command'.   
In the second cage, Dram and Orc both alighted and folded their wings. Orc missed Dram again; and Dram took him by the starboard horn and laid him flat on his back. The good Dramen cheered; but the elder said: 'Dram is no match for such an opponent! Why cheer him when he cannot win?!'.   
On a look-out's post, Summit smote the watch-Dramen and said: 'So: we attack the village?'; Zenith answered: 'No. This place is crawling with Dark Dramen. We could end up in a fire-fight and lose Dram in the process. We just have to wait, and hope Dram doesn't go down-for-the-count'.   
In the second cage, Orc charged Dram, but missed; and Dram pinned him from behind to the cage's central pole. Orc rose, and felled Dram; but Dram saw a beam of wood beside, and smacked Orc off his feet with it. Soon Orc was pinned to the floor, with Dram's new club lodged on his horns. Said he: 'You can't beat me, Dram!'.   
Dram answered: 'I can, and I will!' but Orc smote him twice across the face, and tipped him off. Said the elder: 'Dram, look out'.   
Said Zenith: 'Time to throw in the towel, and everything else we've got. Aim your Windjammers at Dread Wing; fire on my mark!', and the Dragon Flyz readied their Windjammers. Orc swung a fist at Dram, who rolled out of the way. The Dark Dramen snarled. Dram leapt onto Orc's back, and smote the nape of his neck with both fists. Orc fell; but rose again, and threw Dram off. Now Dram had his back to the lava-pool, and when Orc charged him again, Dram ducked him, and Orc nearly fell into the lava; but Dram caught him by the legs.   
Said Dram: 'Give up!', and Orc shouted: 'No more! I give up! Don't drop me!'; and Dram pulled him to safety. The good Dramen cheered.   
Said Dread Wing: 'You lose, Vydak! You're a disgrace to your race!'.   
Said Vydak: 'You pay for this, dragonator!'; but behind him came the Dragon Flyz on their exo-wings, who showered him with their Windjammers and gave their battle-cry of 'Dragon Flyz, maximize!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Get them!'; and Vydak, Nocturna, Fryte, and the Dark Dramen spread their wings and flew. In the second cage, Dram spread his own wings, broke the cage from within, and swept upon the others, that still held the good Dramen. The guards showered darts upon him; but the good Dramen grabbed them between the bars of their cages, and held them prisoner instead, until the dragonators could stun them. With the guards stunned, Dram threw down the cages' doors and asked the Dramen within: 'Is it still hopeless? Are you unwilling to fight, even now?!'.   
Said the elder: 'We cannot fight; but we can protect ourselves!', and all the good Dramen followed Dram to freedom.  
Above them, Zenith stunned the last Dark Dramen, and Dread Wing trained a plasma-blaster on him; but Dram threw him down. Dread looked about himself; then spread his wings and flew, for he was a coward and found himself outnumbered. All around, the good Dramen felled the Dark Dramen one-by-one, until not one remained. Last of all, the elder tripped Vydak. Said Dread Wing: 'We play the hand we have been dealt, Blackheart; but the game is not over. Nocturna, the next time you have any Good Ideas, keep them to yourself!', and rode Blackheart to Warnado, with Nocturna and Fryte behind him.   
Vydak and his Dark Dramen were all put into cages, and the elder said: 'Our blood flows from the same river, Dram. You have taught me a Valuable Lesson: some times, as a Last Resort, we must fight, to protect ourselves, and those we love. Our people agree: you would be a valuable leader, Dram'. Dram answered: 'Evil must always be conquered, Kandra; and now you have seen its face, you can conquer it, without me'.   
Said Zenith: 'Seems like everyone owes you today, Dram; and me, most of all'.   
Dram answered: 'You owe me too many, Zenith, but you came back; and for that, Dear Brother, I will always owe you'. With that, the dragonators rode home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be continued…
> 
> Dram, it seems, was wrong about Kreiko (see ch. III); but his flashback forms the grounds for a lot of speculation on When precisely Aaron lost his legs? and How it was, with Dram growing up with the others?


	13. The Eclipse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a routine astronomical event, brings an unusual astonishment…

Some time later, on a windy day in Airlandis, Aaron hovered in the Skywatch Control-Room, and worried. In his own Observatory, he typed calculations into a computer, and took notes. Wind grew stronger all over Airlandis, and the Dragon Flyz came into the open, with their Dragons on foot beside them. A great shadow had fallen across the Sun. A helm fell off one of the Skywatch, and Apex retrieved it for him. Said he: 'The winds are really windy to-day!'. Apex mounted Blazewind, and Peak said: 'Looks like you broke another heart, Sis'. Apex only laughed, and urged Blazewind forward.   
Aaron floated into the midst of his children, and said: 'Orac is sending you to the surface for Amber crystals'.   
Said Zenith: 'Is there a problem, Father?'.   
Said Aaron: 'I just wanted to warn you’.  
Said Peak: 'About Dread Wing?'; but Aaron answered: 'No; something far more powerful. A new eclipse of the Sun: the first of the New Millennium'.   
Said Peak: '“An eclipse”? What's that?', and Aaron answered: 'It's when the shadow of the Moon covers the Sun, and casts Earth into darkness. A thousand years ago, an Eclipse was harmless: an astronomical curiosity that brought high tides; a slight change in the weather; and hundreds of curious on-lookers'.   
Quoth Summit: 'But the Earth isn't what it used to be', and Aaron answered: 'Thus, my warning. With volcanic eruptions on the surface, Warp Winds, and extreme changes in the climate, I can't predict what effects an Eclipse will have on our planet'.   
Said Peak, atop Wing-Storm: 'I can't wait'.   
Said Apex, atop Blazewind: 'I can'.   
Said Zenith, atop Riptor: 'Don't worry, Father; we'll be back before you can say “black-out”'.   
Said Aaron: 'See to it you are', and the Dragon Flyz launched their dragons.  
From Warnado, arose Blackheart, Nightmare, and Skunk, with their riders on their backs and Dark Dramen behind them.   
On the surface, the winds were hot and bothersome; and as on Airlandis, much stronger than usual. Said Zenith, on Riptor: 'The Amber-beds are bone-dry! Not a single Crystal in sight!'.   
Said Apex, on Blazewind: 'The wind's whipping up! Maybe we should go back before the Eclipse hits!'.   
Peak answered: 'Winds whip up, and we whip out? No way!', and Wing-Storm bellowed his agreement. Said Peak: 'I'm not going back to Airlandis empty-handed! Tag along and take notes!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Do you know you have an Attitude-Problem, Peak?', who said: 'Yeah! But just a little one!'. Zenith and Apex followed them (all four still on their dragons).  
Lightning flashed; thunder boomed; and acid-rain fell. Said Dread Wing: 'What a magnificent day! Claps of thunder! Bolts of lightning! Savage winds! The Earth thrown into utter darkness! O what more could a mutant ask for?'.   
Said Nocturna: 'The Dragon Flyz', and Dread continued: 'Yes: the heads of the four Dragon Flyz. That would make this day eclipse every other!'.   
Meanwhile, the Dragon Flyz themselves were still in search of crystals, along the lava-canyons, when Blazewind espied some, and said as much to Apex, who notified her brothers: 'Blazewind is picking up a vibration of Amber crystals! It's nearby;–– coming from over there: due East!'.   
Said Zenith: 'There's a plateau through that path! We can't fly in this! We'll pick up the crystals and put down at the foot, and wait out the Eclipse!'. Quoth Summit: 'No argument from me! Let's do it!', and turned Fury in the proper direction. All the dragons followed suit. Low over the lava they flew, and Peak said: 'There are no crystals here!'.   
Said Apex: 'I don't understand! Blaze has never been wrong!'.   
Summit called: 'So what do we do now?'. Dread Wing and his minions rose to the attack, and Zenith answered: 'We take evasive action!'. Said Peak: 'There goes the neighborhood'.   
Summit and Peak rode one way, with Nocturna and Fryte in pursuit. Wing-Storm was caught in a nasty current of wind, and tossed wildly; but Peak called: 'Pull out, Wing-Storm! Pull out!', and the Dragon did so. Apex called: 'Nice sky-hook, Little Brother!', and fired her Windjammer on Nightmare, who retreated. Said Peak: 'Is that what it was?'.   
Said Apex: 'Stay with me now!' and felled Skunk and Fryte with a stunning-blast. Nearby, Blackheart spat fire at Riptor, and nearly set a great stone basin ablaze. Fryte and Nocturna returned to the fight, with their plasma-blasters. Two Dramen pursued Summit, who fired his Windjammer on them; and Nocturna on Nightmare pursued Peak, until Apex on Blazewind interposed themselves. Apex fired her Windjammer on them; but Fryte retaliated with his plasma-blaster, and both rode around Blazewind after Peak, who shot at them.   
Said Apex: 'The winds are throwing off my aim!'.   
Said Peak: 'Same here! Let's zip, Sis!'.   
Said Apex: 'Right behind you!'. Wing-Storm rose, and Blazewind rose with him.   
Said Fryte: 'Run, Dragon Flyz, run! Run for your lives!', while Nocturna circled Nightmare to rejoin him. The two mutants on their dragons disappeared into the clouds. Above all, the Eclipse overcame the Sun; and exactly beneath it, in the basin overflown by Riptor and Blackheart, a massive black orb arose from the stone floor. Zenith and Summit fired stunning-blasts backward at the Dramen and Blackheart, who still pursued them. The battle raged on; but the Dragon Flyz looked suspiciously at the basin, from which now arose a great dark cloud of dust. Said Dread Wing: 'I predict stormy weather ahead of you, Dragon Flyz! The Mistress of the Endless Night, demands justice!'. A black sphere rose from the stone floor, as large as a mountain, and Summit asked: 'What is that?!'.   
Zenith unseated Fryte with his Windjammer, and Peak and Summit tried the same upon Dread Wing. Blackheart spat fire, but missed. Zenith answered Summit: 'Our way out! Follow me! We can use the sphere for a wind-break! Dragon Flyz, maximise!', and dismounted Riptor on his exo-wings. Summit, Peak, and Apex followed suit. Said Zenith: 'Riptor! Take command of the dragons! You're flying solo, now'. Riptor did so, and the Dragons departed.   
Said Fryte: 'I go after Dragons!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Forget the reptiles, idiot! Concentrate on the Dragon Flyz. I want them annihilated;–– now!!'. For a moment, the mutants rained plasma-blasts upon our heroes, who shot stunning-blasts upon them in return.   
Said Apex: 'There! It's a way in!', and pointed out a great triangular door. Her brothers, who still crossed shots with the Dramen, followed her into it. Said Zenith: 'All right, Flyz! Hold off the Dramen while I secure this door!', and Peak and Summit unseated Nocturna, whom Fryte caught. Said she: 'Take your talons off me!', and spread her wings and flew. Zenith shut the great door; and with a final blast of his own Windjammer, shot the bolt. Said he: 'That should give us some time. Now let's see if there's anyone home'.   
Said Dread Wing, outside: 'Then this sphere will become their tomb. Blackheart! My dream is beyond that door. Destroy it!', and Blackheart rammed the sphere with his impenetrable head.   
Within, a voice said: 'Do you wish to enter the Citadel?'.   
Said Zenith: 'Who was that? Who's there?'.   
Peak unfolded his exo-wings and answered: 'I don't know; and right now, I don't care. Somebody say “yes”!'.   
Said Apex: 'Yes; we wish to enter', and the voice said: 'Enter here. Your journey is over; your reward awaits'.   
Said Zenith: 'What does that mean?'.   
Said Peak: 'I don't know; but it's got to be better than the reward Dread's got waiting for us!'. With that, he and Apex led the others into the Citadel. 

Without, the Eclipse still covered the Sun; the sphere still floated above the basin; and Dread on Blackheart still circled it. At Dread's direction, Fryte and Nocturna shot plasma-blasts at the sphere, and Blackheart rammed it again, to no avail.   
Within, the Dragon Flyz flew and walked into a great chamber, where thousands of Ambers floated in a giant plexiglass capsule. Quoth Summit: 'This is what Blazewind sensed! There's enough Amber crystals here for a hundred years! Yes! We've hit the Jackpot!'.   
Said Peak: 'Yeah; now how do we collect it?'; but a door opened behind them all, and a robot said: 'Welcome; we have waited a long time for your arrival. You have returned to us'.   
Said Apex: 'Excuse me; but do we know each-other?'.   
Said the robot: 'The creators of the Citadel were human, as you are. The creators were forced to leave the surface, and abandon Earth, in a spacecraft powered by Amber Crystals', and showed an illustration on the wall. Said Peak: 'Hey; that ship looks just like Airlandis!' (which, of course, it was).   
The robot finished: 'The creators knew that their descendants would return, when Day became Night. They entrusted us to protect the reward until then. Are you the Descendants?'.   
Peak answered: 'Yes!', and to Apex added: '(It worked before, didn't it?)'. At once, the robot marked a circle on the floor and answered: 'Then step inside the Citadel'.   
Said Apex: 'Peak: step back. Let me go', and entered the circle. Said the robot: 'Computer running basic molecular and genetic scans on Descendant'.   
Outside, Blackheart spat a lava-blast at the door, and rammed it once more with his impenetrable head, which broke the door open. In leapt Dread Wing and his followers. Within, a voice said: 'Do you wish to enter the Citadel?'; but Dread shattered the loudspeaker with his plasma-blaster.   
In the Citadel itself, the machinery took Apex out of her brothers' sight, and Peak said: 'Let her go!'; but just as the robot turned to answer him, Dread shot it down.   
The robot said: 'Another Destroyer', and Dread remarked: 'I see: my reputation precedes me!'.   
Said the robot: 'You must be eliminated', and more robots came into the great chamber: all identical to the first. Said Zenith: 'They're going to retaliate! Dragon Flyz, maximize!', and all three dragonators took to the air on their exo-wings. One of the robots stunned Summit with a pair of needle-rays, and Peak went to his rescue; but Fryte came at them, and Peak stunned him. Dread Wing slew another robot, and its colleagues fired after him. Quoth Summit: 'It's getting a little crowded around here'; for by now, the air was thick with the robots' needle-rays. Two Dark Dramen beheaded two more robots, and Nocturna shot another, and Zenith said to his brother: 'We've got to find Apex. We're out of here!', and led them away. Said Dread Wing: 'After them!', and the other mutants followed.   
Apex hailed Zenith on his communicator, and he tried to answer; but the mutants' plasma-blasts forced the Dragon Flyz to the floor. Said Zenith: 'Apex: where are you?', and she answered: 'I'm not sure, but I'm not in danger. Take care of yourselves!'. On a control-panel, she raised an image of her brothers and their enemy, and announced to the nearest robot: 'It's Dread Wing! They'll never get out alive! Can you do something?'.   
The robot answered: 'If that is your wish, Creator'.   
Dread Wing had cornered the three, when the robots opened a trap under their feet, and shut it behind them. At the bottom of a chute, they found Apex. Said Zenith: 'What have they done to you?', and she answered: 'They scanned me, and said I was a “match” for the Citadel's architect. It seems the creators of the Citadel were women, and the men were classified as Destroyers'.   
Quoth Summit: 'We're going to be classified as “Dead On Arrival” if we don't get out of here!'.   
Said Apex: 'We're going to take a supply of the crystals and evacuate the Sphere. Is that all right?'.   
The robot answered: 'Everything here is yours, Creator'.   
Said Peak: 'Still breaking hearts; looks like Love at First Sight!'.   
Said Apex: 'It saves a lot of time, instead of Dating!', and her brothers gathered the crystals. To the robot, Apex added: 'The Creator commands you to lead us to safety, and out of the Citadel!'.   
The robot answered: 'We obey the Creator'.   
Said Apex to her brothers: 'See! I could get used to this', and they smiled.

Outside, the eclipse diminished. Inside, the Dragon Flyz left the sphere, with a few crystals each. Fryte and the Dramen fired on them as they went, but missed. Peak stunned Dread Wing; Apex two Dark Dramen; and Zenith another. Dread spread his wings and flew, and said: 'Let's see how you deal with me, Dragon Flyz!'; but they stunned him anew. As the eclipse faded, the sphere descended, and everyone evacuated it.   
Dread Wing shouted: 'Hold your positions! I command you! I'll destroy the next mutant who dares retreat! Nocturna! Fryte! Do you hear me?!'; but they fled, and Dread flew after them, with his mouth full of curses.  
With victory in their arms, the Dragon Flyz rejoined their dragons, and rode homeward to Airlandis. On the ground, Dread Wing crawled from the pit in which the sphere had now hidden itself, and said: 'Curse you, Dragon Flyz! One day, I will bury you! On that day, I will own the skies!'; but that day was never to come. 

Above the Warp Winds, the Dragon Flyz were on their way home. Quoth Summit: 'I guess we'll never know where the sphere came from, now'.   
Said Apex: 'I wouldn't be so sure; look at the inscription on the Crystals!'.   
Summit looked; and on the crystals, saw the inverted chevron that marked his own helm, and that of every dragonator. Said Zenith: 'Our ancestors knew the crystals would be mankind's salvation. They stock-piled the crystals in the sphere, knowing their descendants would need them some day. They weren't just our ancestors: they were prophets'.   
Said Peak: 'The Mother Lode of Amber Crystals;–– gone, for ever!'.   
Said Apex: 'Don't cry over spilled Amber, Peak; it was never ours. Let's get out of here; I've had enough of the Old Earth for one day'.   
Her brothers bowed their heads and said, in mock-robotic voices: 'We obey the Creator'; but Apex said: 'Knock it off, you Guys', and everyone laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was undoubtedly not the very first eclipse of the New Millennium; but it was likely the first to pass so directly over both Airlandis, and the hidden cache of crystals.


	14. Cifex

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the Dragon Flyz make a new friend, and in which one of Apex's conquests proves more complicated than anyone expected…

On their next adventure, the Dragon Flyz rode dragon-back over a desert. Said Peak: 'What do we expect to find in a place like this? I haven't seen any sign of life'. Wing-Storm roared his agreement. Said Peak: 'This is one big waste of Time'.   
Said Zenith: 'We'll never find a region to settle, if we don't look for it. It's a Scouting Mission, Peak! How about a little more Scouting and a little less Lip?!'.   
Said Peak: 'Getting a little hot under the exo-wings, Big Z.?'.   
Zenith answered: 'Sorry, Peak; must be this desert's heat. Summit, give me a temperature-reading', and Summit did. Said he: 'I don't think you want to know', and the dragons roared and flew on.   
Further along their route, some Dark Dramen attacked an old building half-buried in the sand. The Dragon Flyz did not see them at first; but Apex's scanner caught the fight, and she said: 'Level up! I've spotted some activity in the north-west vector!', and the Dragon Flyz rode that way.   
Said Peak: 'You can bet: even though it walks the walk, and talks the talk, it's not human'.   
Apex looked through a telescopic visor and said: 'You're half right, Peak: Dark Dramen are half man, half dragon, and there's four of them right under our feet'.   
With that, the Dragon Flyz descended, and Summit said: 'Something's got them hot-and-bothered'. Said Zenith: 'Single-file formation, Flyz; draw weapons and let's round 'em up!'.   
The lead Dramen smote the door, and the occupant within fired back; and into the fight came the Dragon Flyz, and scattered the Dramen. When Zenith beheaded their leader's mace, he drew his battle-claws instead, and flew. Once on the wing, he tipped Zenith from the saddle; but Zenith spread his exo-wings, and with both fists, forced his enemy to the floor. Another Dramen showered darts on Summit and Sky-Fury, until Summit spread his exo-wings, flew under the Dramen's guard, seized both his legs, and whirled him in circles. Said the Dramen: 'Let me go!'; Summit answered: 'We aim to please!' and threw him into a dune. Another Dramen showered darts on Summit, and Peak called to Apex: 'Hey Sis! How about we stir up a surf-soup for our guests?'. Said she: 'Good idea. One soup du jour, coming up!', and the two Dragons alighted.   
Said Peak: 'Hey Dramen: eat my dust-bowl!', and the two Dragons raised a great cloud of sand, until the Dramen complained: 'I cannot see!'.   
Said Peak: 'That's the point, Scale-for-Brains!', and knocked him down. The third Dramen showered darts blindly, until Apex said: 'Hey! Watch where you point that thing; you could hurt someone!', and knocked him down. The chief Dramen fled, and his three followers with him, and the Dragon Flyz turned their attention to the subject of their raid. The occupant shot at them, and the Dragon Flyz shot back, until Zenith called: 'Hold your fire! We're not going to hurt you! Lay down your weapon and step out now!'.   
The occupant did this; and when he had done, said with some surprise: 'You're human!'.   
Said Peak: 'You took the words right out of my mouth'; for the occupant, now that they saw him, looked exactly like a man, though much paler of complexion than any of the Airlandians. A curious seizure now overcame this figure, and he fell flat on his face before the Flyz, who bore him to Airlandis.   
Once there, Joshua addressed the Council: 'Do you realize what this means? We are not the only human survivors on Earth! This “Cifex” cannot be the only one; there must be others!'; for by such a name, the new discovery identified himself.   
Said Aaron: 'Where is this “Cifex” now?', and Zenith answered: 'Recovering in the sick-bay. Apex is keeping an eye on him'.   
Said Aaron: 'We must find out everything about him. Zenith: go back; take a look around, and see what you find, that could give us answers about our new friend'.   
Said Zenith: 'If the answers are down there, I'll find them'.

In the Oceanic Bio-Sphere, Apex took Cifex swimming with a mother rorqual and her calf. Neither biped might keep pace with the whales; but they clung to the mother-whale's flukes and let her carry them, until she dove for depths too great for them to bear; then rose to the surface, and dried themselves on-shore. Quoth Cifex: 'I can't believe, after all these years, I'm actually speaking to another human being! (And a beautiful one, at that!)'.   
Said Apex: 'I see all that time alone hasn't spoiled your charm! Where is your family, Cifex?'.   
Said he: 'All dead; all dust. I was alone'.   
She asked: 'How did you survive?', and he said: 'I don't know!'.   
She asked: 'How did they die?', and he said: 'I don't know!'; and another seizure overtook him. When it passed, she led him aside, to show him another sight. 

On the sands beside Cifex's shelter, Sky-Fury and Riptor rode at anchor, while Summit and Zenith investigated within. Said Zenith: 'There's no food; no water. What did he live on? –Sand?'.   
Summit opened a cupboard and found nothing in it but cobwebs; but Zenith found a trap-door, and both dragonators descended it, with Windjammers drawn. Underneath the shelter was a computer-laboratory, with a great many obsolete computers. Said Zenith: 'Have you ever seen anything like this?', and Summit answered: 'Never! This stuff has to be hundreds of years old; that dust is four centimetres thick!'. He opened another door, and found a long hall full of raised glass-and-steel coffins, in each whereof reposed a humanoid robot. Said he: 'Bio-mechanical alloy; these bones are metal, Zenith!', who answered: 'Then I have a bone to pick with our “Mr. Cifex”'.  
In the skies beside Airlandis, Apex rode Blazewind, while Cifex rode a spare dragon. Said she: 'This should give you a whole new perspective!'.   
Said he: 'Yes! The world, from up here, is very different!'; and his dragon flew into formation beside Blazewind. Said Apex: 'How's your head?', and he answered: 'Much better! Maybe all I needed was the air (and you)'.   
A message reached them then: 'Skywatch to all Dragonators! There is a breach in Sector B-12! Mutants are bearing onto your position! D-3 status! Prepare for Defensive Action!'.   
Into sight came Nocturna on Nightmare, Fryte on Skunk, and three Dark Dramen on Dragons of their own. Said Apex: 'They're right on top of us! Lesson's over, Cifex; at my signal, bank right and head for Airlandis! I'll be right on your tail! You're in the driver's seat, now!'.   
Quoth Cifex: 'I always was a quick study!'.   
Said Apex: 'Take her up, Blaze!', and the Dragon roared and flew into action. Skywatch sounded the alert, and Peak, Dram, Zarkan, and Nora, with a call of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', took to the sky on their exo-wings. The dragons arose from their eyries, and joined their riders; and six dragons launched, with Peak on Wing-Storm in the lead.   
In the site of battle, Apex shot a Dramen from his saddle; but he spread his wings and flew. Apex gave her signal to Cifex, and Nocturna sent two Dramen on their Dragons to capture Cifex, while she seized Apex herself. Cifex's dragon swept the Dramen from their saddles, and the victors hastened back to rescue Apex; but the third Dramen seized him, and Fryte stunned him with a plasma-blast. The mutants descended into the nearest Wind Pit, and Peak's squadron arrived just in time to see them go. 

On Warnado, Gangrene examined Cifex in his evil laboratory. Quoth he: 'What's this? Incredible! I've never seen anything like it!', and rushed to tell Dread Wing. Cifex woke, and Dread told him: 'Now that you've seen the light, perhaps you'd like to shed some light for us, and for your human acquaintance, on your most extra-ordinary secret’.  
From the gash Fryte's blast had made upon his skin, Cifex now excavated the whole of his fore-arm, and exposed the whole limb, and the entirety of his body, was mechanical. Said he: 'I am a cybernetic construct'.   
Said Apex: 'A robot?'; and Dread answered: 'Yes. It seems your beloved forgot to tell you he had a heart of steel!'.   
Apex answered: 'Better a synthetic heart than no heart at all. Laugh while you can, Dread Wing; my brothers will be here any minute!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'I'm breathless with anticipation. Fryte: lock up the female and the machine in a dark, damp cell; let them rot and rust together!', and laughed. Fryte obeyed him. 

On Airlandis, Aaron and Zenith examined some plans of the robots discovered under Cifex's shelter, when Summit and Peak entered, and the former said: 'Zenith, the Dragonators are ready to saddle up and hit the high-road'.   
Said Aaron to his sons: 'According to the data you brought back, Cifex is one of a series of android soldiers of the 30th Century'.   
Quoth Summit: 'That explains the skeleton in the uniform!’.  
Peak added: 'You mean “skele-tin”, as in “Tin Soldier”'.   
Said Aaron: 'The others must have been destroyed in the Cataclysm, leaving Cifex alone. His memory must have been damaged, until he became convinced he truly was human'.   
Said Peak: 'Leave it to Apex to fall for a toaster-oven', and the Dragon Flyz filed out. Said Aaron: 'Zenith, wait; Cifex's model was the most sophisticated military android ever created. There must be information about the weaponry of the last millennium, stored in his memory. Under no circumstances, must Dread obtain those data'.   
Said Zenith: 'Understood', and hurried after his brothers.

On Warnado, in their cell, Cifex informed Apex: 'The headaches are gone; my neural processors are operating at 100%. I remember everything now: the machine that built me, and the technicians who repaired me after my first mission on the battlefield. I was never what I wanted to be: a human being; I was always just a 'droid! A stupid machine! A worthless piece of bio-metal!', and smote his own head against the door.   
Said Apex: 'Stop that, Cifex, or you'll hurt yourself!'.   
He asked: 'Who cares?', and she answered: 'I do!'; and he stopped. A moment later, he added: 'Being a machine does have its advantages'; for at his stroke, the door had fallen open.

Outside, on Old Earth, the Dragon Flyz on their Dragons were on their way to the rescue. Said Zarkan: 'Dread Wing must be expecting us. What'll we do now?'.   
Zenith answered: 'What we always do: we'll get the job done! Strap in, everyone; we're going down, hard!'.   
Said Zarkan: 'You've got it: hard and fast!'. All the dragons hastened onward, and a horde of screeching Gremwings rose to meet them. Zarkan laid waste to the Gremwings with his Windjammer, and one Gremwing sank its mandibles into Dram's vambrace; but Nora shot it, and Zarkan laid waste to more, until not a Gremwing remained. Said the dragonators: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!' and took to the air on their exo-wings. 

On Warnado, Apex and Cifex half-carried each-other from their cell, down the dark corridors. Dread Wing saw the emptied cell and called: 'Hell-fire! The girl and her iron puppet have escaped! Blackheart!'; and his dragon rose to join him.   
Apex and Cifex had reached the outer perimeter of Warnado, when Cifex said: 'I can't lie, Apex; I'll only slow you down! Leave me, and I'll cover your escape!'.   
Said she: 'I'm not leaving without you; I'll carry you to safety'.   
He answered: 'We can't stand against those Gremwings; you know that!'; but up came Dread Wing on Blackheart, and cast both jail-breakers into his shadow.   
Said Dread Wing to Blackheart: 'Fry them! Broil them! Get rid of the intruders!'; but Cifex started toward them, and said: 'Destroy me, or I will destroy you, Dread Wing', who answered: 'Tin Man, prepare for your baptism, by fire!', and Blackheart scorched Cifex. Dread Wing exulted; but up came the Dragon Flyz, and at the sight of them, Apex spread her exo-wings and flew, and and forced Dread Wing to the ground. He rose first, and prepared to crush her; but a dead branch fell on him from one of the Netherworld's deformed trees, and she rose herself and struck him with both feet. With that, she rejoined her brothers, on Warnado's edge.   
Cifex lay now in Zenith's arms, and Apex said: 'We have to get him back to Airlandis, or he'll end up dead!'; but the android answered: 'We all end up dead, Apex; it's just a matter of “how”, and “when”. I want to thank you, Apex, for making me understand what life is, and giving meaning to mine'. After that, he spoke no more, and Apex shed tears. 

Once returned to Airlandis, Apex scattered flowers on the wind, in memory of Cifex; and mourned only thus, and no more. Airlandis floated peacefully past its usual Wind Pits; but on the ground, Cifex's memory woke in the last intact android, and Cifex himself left his shelter, to take up the last of Apex's flowers and say: 'Apex: remember me!', and set off through the desert.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The description of Cifex recalls Cameron's 'Terminator', and other similar androids; which makes for a potential cross-over or two. His survival at the end, of course, has already suggested plenty of X-rated fanfic. Any comments?


	15. Hell's Gate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the quest for crystals leads deeper into danger than usual…

Some time later, on Airlandis, Orac inspected the Crystals and took notes, when a tremendous explosion shook the city from below. Said Zenith, in a Skywatch station: 'Looks like a hot time in Hell's Gate to-night'.  
Said Aaron: 'It could be, Zenith; the temperature is rising rapidly: 15 degrees in the last hour, and increased seismic activity causing subduction, and convergence of these two massive plates, beneath the Earth's surface'.  
Said Peak: 'What does that mean?', and Aaron answered: 'It means a major eruption soon, my young unstudied son. Hell's Gate is probably the largest active volcano on Old Earth. The magma-chamber is extremely volatile: a time-bomb waiting to explode! A major eruption could affect both Airlandis, and the Global Environment'.  
Aaron's assessment was quite right. Hell's Gate was a stratovolcano, or composite cone, large enough to contain Airlandis and Warnado combined, and nearly half blocked by a plug of hardened lava, almost as large as the mountain itself. Now, Apex on Blazewind, and Summit on Sky-Fury, were sent to investigate the volcano; and found every sign of an imminent eruption. Said Apex: 'Is the camera getting all we see, Father?', and Aaron answered: 'Crystal-clear, Apex. Now scan the area and gather as much data as possible'. Apex saluted him, and the two dragons flew nearer the vent.  
Not far away, Dread Wing on Blackheart asked: 'Are you positive of what you saw down there?', and Nocturna on Nightmare answered: 'Yes. Two Dragon Flyz: the female and another sibling! They were flying directly toward the volcano'.  
Said Dread Wing: '“The volcano”! Well, like all insects, they must be attracted to the light. Let's hope they haven't already singed their exo-wings; I will be so disappointed not to overcome them myself’.  
Apex on Blazewind, and Summit on Sky-Fury, were above the vent when Summit said: 'Whoa! The eruption is making the drags jumpy, Apex!', who answered him: 'No; they're sensing Amber, and lots of it. Do you see any?'.  
Quoth Summit: 'Negative; the cupboard's bare! (Besides: this place will be under millions of tonnes of Molten Rock in a few hours. It won't make a difference whether they're right or wrong!)'.  
Said Apex: 'Drags are never wrong. If they sense Amber, that means there's some here, somewhere. Apex to Skywatch: I have a possible Amber lock-down, and need visual confirmation! I request permission for a drag-dive on the area! Monitor and advise!'.  
Skywatch answered: 'Affirmative, Dragonator Three! Permission granted! Exercise Extreme Caution in the Hot Zone!'.  
Blazewind roared, and Apex said: 'O.K., Blaze; I know you know where the crystals are, but I don't! This is your Crystal Run; I'm just here for the ride, so take us down; show me the Amber! Blaze! What are you doing?! There can't be any Amber in there!'; for Blazewind had flown into the vent itself.  
Quoth Summit: 'Come on, Fury! Pour on a gallon of talon and punch it! We're going after her! Apex! Pull out! You're going to get toasted!', and Sky-Fury followed Blazewind. Blackheart alighted on the rim, and Dread Wing said: '“Out of the flying-pan, and into the fire!”'.  
A message came through: 'Aaron to Apex: pull out! Do not penetrate the caldera! It's too dangerous!', and a gigantic bubble of magma burst before the two dragons and their riders. On Airlandis, Orac said: 'We've lost one of the Crystals! That blasted volcano is gonna blow my reactor!', and Skywatch's transceiver went blank.  
Said Aaron: 'What's the problem?', and Skywatch answered: 'I don't know, Sir. We've lost all audial and visual contact with Apex and Summit!'.  
Said Zenith: 'Peak! Front and center! We've going after them. Surf up, Little Brother!'.  
Said Peak: '“Little”! Do you think you could try, “Younger Brother”, for a change?'; but he followed Zenith's orders, and before long, Zenith on Riptor, Peak on Wing-Storm, and Dram on Shockfire were on their way to Old Earth.  
Said Dread Wing, when he saw them: 'My, my; the flies are swarming to-day; it must be the heat’.  
Zenith telephoned: 'Apex, Summit: come in. Do you read me?’.  
Summit answered: 'Zenith: I read you. We're O.K.; but I hope you're sitting down, because you're not going to believe what we've found down here! I sure don't: it's raining Crystals! They're breaking loose as the volcano erupts!'.  
With that, Team One re-united on the banks of a stream of magma, within the crater. Quoth Summit: 'It's real surf-soup, with all the gasses, the up-draughts, and the heat!'.  
Said Zenith: 'A Yo-Yo Time, huh?'.  
A message came through: 'This is Aaron. We have a situation, here: we've lost 90% of our crystals in the last air-quake! We're losing altitude as we speak! It is imperative the reactors are restoked immediately! We need those Ambers!'.  
Said Zenith: 'Acknowledged. Everyone: prepare for a drag-dive! This may be our only chance to snatch the Amber before this whole place goes Up, and Airlandis comes Down!'.  
Shockfire descended first, and took a crystal. Riptor descended secondly, and took another. Wing-Storm descended third, and took one more. Said Peak: 'Get ready to feel the heat, on our feet!', as they rose. Said he: 'Come on, Wing-Storm; you can do it, Baby: pull up. Pull up!'; but the crystal was destroyed by one of Blackheart's lava-blasts, and Wing-Storm roared in pain.  
Said Dread Wing: 'You really shouldn't lift such heavy objects; you could hurt yourself!'. Nocturna shot plasma-blasts at Peak, who called his brethren: 'Wake up, Flyz; Dread's out of bed!'; and all the Dragon Flyz rode into a tunnel, with their enemies in pursuit. Blackheart took a mouthful of magma and spat it at the Flyz; and Fryte shot plasma-blasts at Summit, who retaliated with his Windjammer. Both missed; but Fryte was tipped from his dragon by an outcrop of rock, and saved himself on his own wings from a fall into the magma. Two Dark Dramen on their own dragons shot plasma-blasts after Apex; but she felled one with her Windjammer, and Zenith the other with his, and said: 'Dram: fly your load back to Airlandis, double-up! It won't stop Airlandis from falling, but it should slow her down', and Dram on Titan obeyed.  
Nocturna on Nightmare shot dozens of Ambers to pieces, and Zenith said: 'Pull back, Dragon Flyz. We've lost this one; let's cut our losses and get back before we lose any more'. The Airlandians fled on their dragons, and Dread and Nocturna followed on theirs; but another bubble of magma separated the enemies, and the Dragon Flyz escaped Hell's Gate.  
Zenith telephoned home: 'Bad news, Father. The crystals got flashed by Dread Wing. We're running on “empty”'.  
Said Aaron: 'Dram's crystals bought us some time, but we'll need to replenish them very soon'.  
Quoth Summit: 'Wait; we may not have lost, yet! Apex: does Blaze still sense crystal?'.  
Apex put the question to Blazewind, and said: 'Yes; but very faint, like it's far away'.  
Quoth Summit: 'Far away, or under ground! As we came up, I spotted a cave on the North Face of the caldera. I'm betting the crystals we saw, came from that cave!'.  
Said Zenith: 'Possible; but impossible to check out! That volcano could erupt any minute and bury us all! Skywatch: how much time before Airlandis runs out of crystals?'.  
Said Aaron: 'An hour; or two, at the most'. Said Zenith to his team: 'I'm going in. I don't have a choice; you do. Anyone who wants to back out: do it now!’.  
Everyone answered: 'We're going in', and Zenith added: 'Wish us luck, Father; this time, we're going to need it'. They returned to the volcano, and Nocturna said: 'There they are; completely at our mercy. After them!'; but Dread answered: 'Wait. The Dragon Flyz have returned to the caldera. We've been tricked!'.  
Once in the cave, the Dragon Flyz commenced their search on foot. Quoth Summit: 'We don't have much time; the magma is rising fast!'.  
Said Zenith: 'Then we'd better rise faster', and all four took to the air on their exo-wings.  
Blackheart and Nightmare alighted outside the cave, and Dread Wing said: 'Two things I can smell within a hundred meters, are treachery, and the stench of human flesh', and dismounted. Once on the floor, he hastened inside and said: 'There! That's where they went!'.  
Said Nocturna: 'Why risk our own safety, Dread? They'll never make it out alive'. Dread answered: 'To know thy enemy, Nocturna, is the first rule of combat; and I know the Dragon Flyz. They went “into the Belly of the Beast” to snare its Amber soul; and that soul, is mine! Now, follow me!', and flew after the Flyz, with Nocturna right behind him.  
On Airlandis, Aaron asked Skywatch: 'What, in the name of Mother Earth, is going on?!', and Skywatch answered: 'Major seismic activity under Hell's Gate, sir; nearing Critical Mass! This could be the Big One! the largest explosion of all’.  
Said Aaron: 'Vox the Dragon Flyz! Tell them to get out of there;–– now!', and Skywatch obeyed; but there was no answer.  
In Hell's Gate itself, the Dragon Flyz on their exo-wings sought Amber in every nook and cranny. Said Peak: 'Is it getting hot under here? Or is it just me?', and a flood of magma broke through the near wall. The Flyz fled before it, and escaped through another tube into a secondary vent of the volcano, deep enough that they could fly above the magma.  
Said Zenith: 'I don't like it'.  
Said Peak: 'We're trapped underground, about to be blown to bits by the grand-daddy of all volcanic eruptions! Boy! these family trips are getting to be a nightmare!'.  
Said Apex: 'It could be worse, Little Brother'; but Peak answered: 'Nothing's worse than you calling me “Little”!'.  
Elsewhere in the tubes, Nocturna said: 'Things are heating up, Dread; we should retreat, and let the volcano do our work for us'. Dread answered: 'Quiet; do you hear that?', just as Zenith said: 'I feel cool air; we've found it!'; whereupon Dread Wing called: 'And I've found you, Zenith! Hah! I knew you'd be down here, trying to steal my Amber!'. To his own followers, he added: 'Have your weapons ready. Time to finish the job!'; and the mutants swept upon the Dragon Flyz. At Dread's command of 'Fire!', the Dramen shot plasma-blasts at our heroes, but missed.  
The volcanic tremors grew greater, and Airlandis tilted askew. Aaron asked: 'How long before our supply of crystals is exhausted?', and Skywatch answered: 'Not long, sir; but we don't have enough for a Full Deceleration Burn! Airlandis is falling!'.  
Said Aaron: 'Any word from the Dragon Flyz?', and Skywatch answered: 'Nothing but static, sir. Should we sound the Evacuation Alarm?'.  
Said Aaron: 'Wait. There may still be a chance the Dragon Flyz may return with the Amber, if they are still alive'; a chance Dread Wing's forces were busy to diminish: plasma-blasts were everywhere, and the Dragon Flyz were hard-pressed.  
Quoth Summit: 'Use the tunnels for cover! The Amber's down here somewhere, and we've got to find it!'. Immediately each Dragon Fly dove into a tunnel, and Dread sent his minions in pursuit, with himself last. The Dragon Flyz lost pursuit in the tunnels; and when they emerged at the far ends, they were surrounded by the Amber they sought.  
Said Peak: 'If there's a Heaven for Amber, this is it!'.  
Said Apex: 'The Amber crystal must form from the resin of those petrified trees!'.  
Said Peak: 'Look at the size of those crystals!'.  
Said Zenith: 'Peak, it's not the size that counts; it's the thought! Now load up, and let's find a way out of here!'.  
Said Peak: 'I betcha I'll bring back the biggest one; any takers?'; but a plasma-blast shattered the crystal nearest him, and in came Dread Wing, Nocturna, Fryte, and their Dramen.  
Said Peak: 'Not again!'; and said Dread Wing: 'I warned you against picking up things too heavy for you, Little Bug; I'm not going to warn you again! Dark Dramen: destroy the Amber;–– all of it!', and the Dramen shot plasma-blasts on every side.  
Said Zenith: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', and all four took to the air on their exo-wings.  
Quoth Summit: 'Zing some wings, Flyz!', and turned his Windjammer on the mutants. Apex and Zenith followed suit; but Peak instead took hold of a crystal as large as himself, and said: 'Orac won't believe his eyes when he sees this one!'.  
Said Zenith: 'Peak, what are you doing? Get out of there, now!'. Above them both, magma burst into the amber-cavern, and Nocturna scored a stroke upon Apex. Said Dread Wing: 'You'll never get the Amber!'; but Zenith answered: 'The Amber is ours, Dread; live with it!', and knocked him down with both fists. Even as the combatants recovered their footing, more magma burst into their midst; and then still more, until columns of molten rock pillared the room. Two Dark Dramen were smothered under it, and the other mutants spread their wings and fled; but Peak dislodged his immense crystal, and carried it into the air.  
On the exterior of the mountain, the eruption grew stronger; and on Airlandis, Aaron said: 'We can't wait any longer! Start the evacuation!'.  
In the cavern, a new shaft opened, empty of magma, and Dread Wing and his followers escaped through it. Said Zenith: 'There's our way out! Everyone grab a crystal, and let's get back to Airlandis!', and his brethren obeyed. The shaft collapsed behind Fryte, and Dread Wing thought he had left the Dragon Flyz to die; but he was wrong, as usual. Peak's crystal was heaviest, and Zenith helped him carry it. As the Flyz emerged from the interior, Apex called: 'There! It's the dragons!'; and all four mounted the dragons and rode back to Airlandis, while the volcano erupted behind them. Orac had just begun to unload his Amber reactors, when the Dragon Flyz arrived to refuel them; and Orac said: 'Bless you, lads and lass! I knew you wouldn't let an old man down, or Airlandis down either!'.  
Sure enough, the reactors were soon reloaded with the fresh crystals, and Airlandis prepared to rise anew. Said Orac: 'Which of you geothermal genii brought me this humungous crystal? It'll never fit!'; but forced Peak's crystal into the reactor none the less, and Zenith re-activated the reactor. At once, Airlandis righted itself and rose. Her rescuers smiled, and citizens applauded.  
A few hours later, Airlandis floated back to her customary position in the sky, and the Dragon Flyz relaxed in their father's library. Said Peak: 'Well, if anyone wants to know the Hot Places in town, just ask me'.  
Said Aaron: 'Congratulations, my children; Airlandis survives for another day'.  
Said Peak: 'Yeah. We beat Dread; we won!'.  
Said Zenith: 'We were one crystal away from losing Airlandis. This is no way to win!'.  
Said Peak: 'What do you mean? Is there a way to win?'.  
Said Zenith: 'No; but there is a way to lose more slowly, Little Brother'.  
Said Peak: 'All right! That's it! This stops here! Explain to me: if I'm so little, how is it I brought back the biggest crystal of all? I mean: I'd think I deserved a Medal, or something!'.  
Quoth Summit: 'Yeah: a Medal for the Biggest Pride in Airlandis!', and everyone laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reference to petrified trees, likely explains the name of Amber. 
> 
> Hell's Gate itself is identifiable with no volcano of our time, so it must be a product of the Cataclysm.
> 
> Zenith's comment, I think, illuminates the realities of war. Any opinions?


	16. Ground Zero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a new and deadly discovery, presents an opportunity for the greatest heroic feat yet…

However few the crystals acquired from Hell's Gate, they sufficed until much later; and it is almost incredible, that the Dragon Flyz gained no more, before their next adventures. Be that as it may: we join our heroes next on Old Earth, in another dragon-back fight with the Dark Dramen. In this fight, the Dragon Flyz had the advantage; for their dragons were faster and cleverer than those of their enemies, and their Windjammers more accurate than the Dramen's plasma-blasters. Apex shot a Dark Dramen from the sky; Peak shot another; and Apex called: 'Hard left, Peak! Watch out!', as a third shot a plasma-blast at him. Peak, accordingly, ducked the blast, and Apex shot his attacker. Quoth he: 'That's it! You've got me mad! Do you want to see a hot-head? You've got it!', and he and Apex swerved apart, on their Dragons. Nocturna on her own wings pursued Zenith on Riptor; but Riptor swatted her aside with his tail, and Summit on Sky-Fury rose to the rescue; but Nocturna scored Fury's underside with her talons, and escaped. Zenith on Riptor pursued her; but a Dark Dramen fired on Zenith from the back of his own dragon, and Zenith turned against him instead. Up came Summit and shot the Dramen at arm's length.   
Elsewhere, Apex fired on Fryte, and he on her; but her third shot struck him, and his blaster flew from his arm, struck a Dramen from his saddle, and sank into the lava below, where it burst into pieces and raised huge waves and explosions and clouds of vapour from the flow. Said Peak: 'What's going on? The ground's shaking like my knees at a pop-quiz!'. Masked by the explosions from the sight of their attackers, the other Dragon Flyz on their dragons re-assembled in formation, and Zenith said: 'This is no fire-drill; this place is a toast-strip! Let's wing out of here!'.   
Said Apex: 'What about Peak? He could be hurt!'.   
Summit answered: 'He's a Big Boy!', and Zenith added: 'Summit's right: Peak can take care of himself. Come on!', and took Riptor to the skies, with Apex on Blazewind and Summit on Sky-Fury to follow him, and their enemies in hot pursuit: Nocturna on her own wings, Fryte on Skunk, a Dramen on dragon-back, and a dragon of Warnado with no rider at all.   
Said Zenith over the telephone: 'Peak: we're headed back to Airlandis! Return to Base as soon as you can!'.   
Peak answered: 'Don't hold the train for me; I'll be right behind you! Yo-yo Time, Stormy; take up!'; but another explosion surprised them, and Peak was thrown from the saddle. Wing-Storm immediately returned to retrieve him, while the others flew into the Wind Pits.   
Said Nocturna to Fryte and the Dramen: 'It's useless; we'll never catch them in here'.   
Said Fryte: 'D'agon Flyz escaped again! Dread will not be pleased!’.  
Nocturna answered: 'Who says, we have to tell him, Fryte?', who answered: 'Not Fryte, and not Dramen, if Dramen want to live!', and led them all to Warnado.   
Peak woke on some rocky ground, just as Wing-Storm alighted before him, and raised a cloud of dust. Quoth he: 'Quit the wing-action, Storm! I'm not dead yet; but I will be if you keep that dust up!'.   
Said Wing-Storm: 'Aren't you grateful I'm here?!’.   
Said Peak: 'Of course I'm grateful; I didn't mean it like that! (You take everything so personally)', and examined the ground. Said he: 'Hey; look what we have here: a souvenir from the Big B.C.;–– Before the Cataclysm!'; for a great gap lay open before them, with edges of metal: the ruin, it seemed, of some long-buried edifice. Said the dragonator: 'Peak to Dragon Flyz One: do you read me? –Great; the vox-box is dead, and we'll be, too, if I don't find a way out of here! I'll check out the “souvenir shop”, Storm; you get the others'; but Storm shook his head and said: 'I'm not leaving you here'.   
Said Peak: 'Come on, Stormy; do as I say! This could be the Find of the Millennium! If I don't go, we won't know', and Wing-Storm grumbled and launched himself, while Peak, with a glance after him, descended into the ruin. Fryte on Skunk saw Wing-Storm go, and said: 'Look! A Dragon, with no rider!'.   
Said Nocturna: 'That means a Rider with no Dragon, and that will be easy prey', and the mutants flew in search of him.   
In the ruins, Peak lit his headlamp and said to himself: 'Whoa! It looks like the Explosion shook up the Basement! Look at this Old-Earth-stuff! I'm bound to find some bargains down here', and entered further.   
Outside, a Dark Dramen said: 'There! The trail is still fresh; the stench of human flesh is still strong'.   
Said Nocturna: 'Not as strong as the sweet smell of success, right under our noses. Tell Lord Dread Wing, and Gangrene, to come here at once; they'll want to see this themselves', and the Dramen obeyed.   
In the ruins, Peak said to himself: 'This is definitely a Blast from the Past: some kind of symbol, probably meant to protect whatever's behind that door!'. Nocturna and Fryte approached him from behind; but when he turned at the sound of their steps, they hid. Said he: 'Maybe I should wait until the other's get here; and then again: maybe not!', and activated his Windjammer.   
Quoth Nocturna: 'Fry the Fly! Finish him off!', and shot a plasma-blast at him; but Peak ducked it, and the blast opened the door instead. Nocturna, Fryte, and the Dramen advanced on him, and shot more blasts; but Peak slipped through the door and closed it against them.   
At dusk, above the Warp Winds, Peak's team tried to raise him on the Vox Box: 'Peak, this is Summit. The joke's over; no-one's laughing! Come in, Peak!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Any word?', and Summit answered: 'Nothing; just Dead Air'.   
Said Zenith: 'Dead Air or not, Peak had better be breathing'.   
Said Apex: 'Look! It's Wing-Storm! But I don't see Peak'. Sure enough: up came Wing-Storm, and joined the others. Apex asked him where Peak had gone, and relayed his answer to her brothers: 'Storm says: “Peak took refuge. The mutants attack; Nocturna is in command”'; for Storm, with his mind still connected to that of Peak, had seen it all.   
Said Zenith: '“Nocturna”! That's all we need to know! We're going back down. Storm: show us the way!', and Wing-Storm roared his agreement and led the others.   
In the ruins, Peak hid from plasma-blasts behind a second door, and found himself in a control-room. Said he: 'Everything is in Perfect Working-Order! This stuff must come with a Lifetime Guarantee!'; but the mutants blasted open the second door, and Peak was surrounded.   
Said Nocturna: 'Tie him up! What a pity I told Dread Wing of this discovery; I could have used this ancient arsenal to serve my own ambitions!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Or your Lord, Nocturna!'.   
Said she: 'Dread Wing! You've arrived!', and he answered: 'It appears: just in time. Leave us now, while I explore my newest acquisition!'.   
At that, Gangrene threw Peak aside and re-activated the long-dormant controls, and said: 'Our prayers have been answered, Dread Wing; Evil has been rewarded!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'What are you talking about?', and Gangrene answered: 'Don't you know what these are?!', and indicated a double-file of Olympian pillars, visible through the great window above the control-panels.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Why don't you enlighten us, Gangrene?', who merely re-activated more machinery and said: 'It works! I can't believe it! It still works!'.   
Dread Wing asked: 'What works?!'.   
Said Gangrene: 'Don't you know what these are?!', and said Dread Wing: 'Gangrene: I'm getting tired of this guessing-game. Now: why don't you tell me what they are?, or perish with your secret!'.   
By way of the controls, Gangrene maneuvered a rocket onto a launch-pad, within one of the pillars; opened the roof above them all; and answered: 'The steering-jets appear still operational! The on-board targeting-system;–– likewise!'; but the window burst, and Dread Wing seized him and roared: 'Am I the bull's-eye? Are you trying to kill us all?!'.   
Said Gangrene: 'No; these are Missile Siloes! For Nuclear Missiles!'.   
Dread released him and said: '“Nuclear Missiles”!: Crude, but effective. With this, we can pick any target and blow it up'.   
Gangrene assented: 'Blow it sky-high!', and Dread answered: 'I was hoping you'd say that. Now: which target should I destroy first? It's time to let this missile go, and set Airlandis all a-glow!’.   
Across the room, Peak cut himself loose of the cords that held him, and trained his Windjammer on both of his enemies. The Dramen, in turn, trained their plasma-blasters on him, and Dread Wing said: 'Why hasn't his weapon been disarmed?! Gangrene: lock onto the co-ordinates! By the time he blasts us, Airlandis will be blasted out of the sky!'. With that, he seized Peak, and bade the Dramen hold him; and Gangrene launched the first missile.   
The other Dragon Flyz saw it go, and Summit asked: 'What was that?!'.   
Quoth Zenith: 'A missile! And it's headed straight for Airlandis;–– too fast to follow!'.   
On Airlandis, an announcement rang out: 'Skywatch Alert! Unidentified Flying Object incoming! Closing at 320 meters per second! Estimated impact imminent!'.   
In the ruins, Dread Wing bade Gangrene: 'Adjust the steering-jets, by 10 degrees!', and Gangrene obeyed; whereupon the missile swerved past Airlandis and exploded against a mountain instead. Even so: the explosion shook Airlandis, and shattered the mountain into pebbles.   
On Old Earth, Wing-Storm led the other Dragons to the ruins. Once there, Zenith telephoned: 'Skywatch: this is Dragonator One. Skywatch: do you read me?'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'No need to worry, yet; I'd rather rule an Airlandis in one piece'. Behind him came Nocturna and the Dramen, with Peak in their foul grasp. Summit started forth; but Zenith stopped him, for Nocturna had her blaster at Peak's jaw, and might kill him at once if anyone attacked alone.   
Skywatch answered Zenith: 'Skywatch to Zenith; come in, Dragonator One!'; but Dread Wing said: 'Tell your people: I give your Council of Cowards one hour to surrender their flying city to me! Assure them: I won't miss my target a second time'.  
Dread Wing's message soon reached Airlandis, and the Council convened. Said Joshua: 'The sins of our fathers have doomed us! We have no choice! You've seen the power of Dread's new weapon! We must surrender!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Surrender, and die: if the missiles don't kill us, the lava-pits of Old Earth will!'.   
Said Joshua: 'Well, I'm ready to take that risk!'.   
Said Aaron: 'I am not. Orac: what would you say our chances were against these missiles?'.   
Said Orac: 'A single direct hit, would be the end of us'.   
Said Aaron to the Council: 'We still have the full contingent of dragonators at our side. They've saved Airlandis before; they can save us again'.   
Said Orac: 'Even a dragonator has its limits, Aaron; and against a nuclear missile, those limits are zero, to none!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Council, hear me! I have fought Dread; and if we surrender to him, we lose more than our lives; we lose our conscience, our hope, and our freedom: everything that makes us worthy to live'.   
A little later, the message reached Old Earth: 'Dread Wing: this is Aaron. The Council of Airlandis has reached its decision. The answer is: “No”! We will never surrender Airlandis'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'The blood of Airlandis will be on your head, Aaron! Your crippled pride will be your destruction! You will pay for this madness with your lives!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Dragon Flyz! You are our only hope! The next missile must never reach Airlandis'.   
Said Zenith: 'But Father; Dread's taken Peak prisoner!', and Dread himself shot plasma-blasts at them all, and missed. Summit and Apex shot down the Dramen that held Peak; but Dread himself seized the young Dragonator, and flew into the ruins with Peak in his foul grasp. Once there, he ordered: 'Gangrene: light these candles and blow out Airlandis, for ever!'. To Peak he added: 'I have a farewell present for you, Dragon Fly'.   
Outside the ruins, Peak's brothers and sister said: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', and took to the air on their exo-wings. In the control-room, Gangrene typed rapidly upon the controls, and a second missile prepared to rise. The remnant of Team One arrived in the launching-bay just in time to hear Dread Wing say: 'I'm sending you back to your beloved city! Bon voyage;–– or should I say: “Bomb voyage”?!', and see him shut Peak in a spare compartment of this missile. The Dragon Flyz fired on Dread; but he hid in the control-room, and Gangrene launched all the missiles at once. So strong were the toxic gasses and searing heat of the launch, that the Dragon Flyz lowered the visors of their helms, and shielded themselves with their exo-wings. When the missiles had gone, Apex said: 'That's it! There's nothing we can do, now. Airlandis will fall!'.   
Said Zenith: 'There's nothing we can do for Airlandis; but we can still save Peak'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Zenith's right! Father will deploy the Dragonators; but we're Peak's only chance!', and all three took to the air on their exo-wings, to save him.  
On Airlandis, one of Skywatch called: 'Full air-strike!', and Aaron answered: 'Alert all Dragonators! Go to D-4 Status! Evacuate the population!', and Skywatch sounded a general alarm. Sirens rang all over Airlandis. Skywatch herded the population into gigantic strato-gliders. Dragons rose from their eyries, and their riders rose to meet them. Cries of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!' filled the air.   
On Old Earth, Team One were on their dragons, in pursuit of the missile that still contained Peak. Said Apex: 'We'll never catch it in time'. Zenith shot the missile with his Windjammer; whereupon the missile tore itself in pieces and fell, and the dragons descended to catch it. From their saddles, the Dragon Flyz shot grappling-hooks and caught the segment in which Peak still lay bound; and Zenith, with the usual cry of 'Maximise!', took to the air on his exo-wings, and descended upon this segment, which he opened and entered to save Peak, while Wing-Storm hovered nearby to receive him. A moment later, Zenith and Peak emerged, and mounted their dragons. Said Peak: 'Those ropes were giving me a Nasty Rash!'.   
Said Wing-Storm: 'I missed you, Peak', and Peak said: 'I missed you too, Stormy; believe me!'.   
Above the Warp Winds, the dragonators on their dragons at last encountered the missiles; and thus began the greatest feat of the Dragon Flyz. Each dragon chose a missile and tore open the casing with its great hind-claws; and the missile, slowed by the increased friction, tore itself in pieces and fell. Said Gangrene in the control-room: 'First missile; intercepted!', and said Dread Wing: 'They'll never stop them all! The last out-post of Humanity will be wiped out by the divine temper of the weapons their ancestors created!'; but he was quite wrong, as usual. Dragons tore more missiles, and their dragonators shot still more with their Windjammers; and once torn or shot, the missiles fell into the Warp Winds and broke, to be blown piecemeal around the world for ever.   
In the missile-control-room, Gangrene said: 'Excuse me, Dread Wing; it appears that one of the missiles is changing course'; for Team One had that missile still, from which they rescued Peak, and they were carrying it toward the launch-pads.   
Said Dread Wing: 'What do you mean?!’, and Gangrene answered: 'I mean: RUN!!!!!!!'; and Dread Wing and his followers fled for their lives, just as Team One dropped the missile on its port of origin, and it exploded as only a fission-missile could. A great blast overtook the launching-station, and “a gigantic column of ash and gas, rose miles into the sky”.   
Above the Warp Winds, more than half the missiles remained intact; but with their controls destroyed, they simply de-activated themselves, and fell past Airlandis into the Warp Winds and broke, to be blown piecemeal around the world for ever. All Airlandis cheered, and Zenith telephoned: 'Dragon Fly One to Skywatch: we're returning to Base;–– all of us', and Aaron and Joshua, who seldom agreed on anything, leapt into each-other's arms.   
As dawn broke, and Team One drew near Airlandis, Peak on Wing-Storm said: 'Hey Guys; I never got to thank you for the rescue. Thanks anyway'.   
Said Zenith: 'No matter the odds: we'd never let Dread take you from us'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Well; maybe borrow you for a little while'.   
Said Apex: 'Summit: cut it out! you care for Peak as much as the rest of us do'.   
Said Peak: 'Maybe more!', and Summit answered: 'Yeah, right! You're my brother; let's leave it at that!'.   
Said Peak: 'Oho; looks like I lit someone's fuse! You know: there was a second, when I had that rocket in my pocket, I thought: “uh-oh!”; but I've got to admit it: you did it, Summit'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Whoa-ho, wait a minute: we did it'.   
Said Zenith: 'Now let's get home, before someone's temper blows, and we really have something to worry about', and everyone laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This episode suggests, the Airlandians and their mutant enemies are alike more resistant to heat and hard radiation than people of our time. 
> 
> Dread Wing's phrase, 'Divine temper of the weapons' refers to the usual literary habit, established by Dr. Oppenheimer, of using the same language to describe atomics, that the ancients were accustomed to use on the weapons of the gods.


	17. Betrayal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Gangrene's latest invention, turns the usual feud, into a fight for the freedom dragons everywhere…

Chapter XIV: Betrayal

We next join our heroes, as Team One on their dragons flew low over the canyons of Old Earth, and Dread Wing said: 'Flee if you will, Dragon Flyz; you cannot escape your destiny. Your Fall from Grace is at hand: you gambled with your faith, and you lost; your destruction shall come from one you trust the most'. Riptor roared in defiance. Sky-Fury cried in distress, and Summit asked: 'Calm down, Fury; what's the matter with you?'; but Blazewind and Wing-Storm took up the cry.   
Said Apex: 'I think the drags are getting an Amber Rush. Keep on alert, Guys'.   
Fury almost threw Summit, and Peak said: 'If this is a Rush: I think this is our lucky day!'. The dragons roared disagreement, but flew on.   
Zenith telephoned: 'Skywatch: this is Zenith. We're getting an Amber sighting due East. We'll recon as soon as harvest-time is over'.   
Skywatch answered: 'Make that a bumper-crop, and Orac will be on a Crystal High! No sign of Dread Wing or his forces in your air-space; it looks like you have the ball-field to yourselves!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Then let's play ball!', and directed his team. Apex modified his direction, and the dragons flew through a hollow mountain, into the ruins of a city.   
Of what age that city might be, none knew; but it looked to them like something of the 31st Century. Its slanted walls, gigantic buttresses, and rectangular edifices were so sunken into the yellowish stone around them, as to seem almost part of the mountain itself; and both mountain and city had undoubtedly been raised to its present altitude by the Cataclysm. Once past the entrance, the dragons circled the center.   
Said Peak: 'There's the pitch! It's going; going; gone!'. To Apex he added: 'I think our luck's run out. Are the dragons sure there's Amber here?'.   
Said she: 'They've never been wrong before'.   
Said Zenith to Skywatch: 'We're outside the regulated air-space. Any sign of hostile activity?'.   
Skywatch answered: 'Negative. The vid-screen's clean; not a mutant for miles!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Roger that, Skywatch'.   
Said Riptor: 'We're closer to it than ever!', and Zenith added to his team: 'Commence the Amber-run! Stay with me, Flyz; the target is dead-ahead!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Right on schedule!'. The dragons flew into a tunnel, and came to a halt where it ended; and Dread added: 'They're in exactly the wrong place, at exactly the right time!', and attacked them from the rear, with his Dark Dramen. A plasma-blast tipped Peak from his saddle; but Wing-Storm caught Peak as he fell, and laid him alive in the saddle again. Said Peak: 'Now, that's what I call, “mouth-to-mouth resuscitation”!'.   
Apex felled two Dramen with her Windjammer, and Zenith two more. Dread answered: 'You're becoming predictable!', and fired on him. Riptor bellowed, and struck down more Dramen; Sky-Fury seconded Riptor; and Summit said: 'I have a prediction for you, Dread: eat my dust!'. The remaining Dramen closed ranks beside their master, who fired anew, and Zenith called: 'There's too many of them!', and led a retreat.   
Dread pursued them, and shot down a great pillar as they passed it; but the falling block missed our heroes, and Zenith called: 'Let's burn some wing before they burn us!', and the Dragon Flyz fled on their dragons. A Dramen said: 'We go after them!', but Dread Wing answered: 'No; not this time. Their defeat can wait for another day, like to-morrow'.  
On Airlandis, Team One confronted Skywatch, who said: 'What happened down there?'.   
Zenith answered: 'You tell me! Dread and the Dramen were waiting for us!'.   
Said Skywatch: 'That can't be! There was nothing on our screen; we never saw him!'.   
Zenith answered: 'We did! And he knew exactly where we were going!'.   
Said Aaron: 'What's going on here?'.   
Zenith answered: 'I don't know, Father; but I do know: Dread's attack wasn't co-incidental. He knew where to find us'.   
Said Peak: 'We're not going back, until we know what's going on!'.   
Said Joshua: 'Surely you don't suspect one of us!’.  
Zenith answered: 'No-one's above suspicion, Joshua'.   
Said Aaron: 'We'll double the guard around Skywatch; but I have a plan to keep Dread off your tails'.   
In Warnado, in his evil laboratory, the engineer Gangrene was at work on a new machine. Said he: 'This device may make any brain-wave, my slave! Truly: my greatest invention!'. With that, he seated himself in a chair, and laid the invention over his head and eyes. Said he: 'I can feel my senses extending; my brain growing stronger!'; but in came Dread Wing, and said: 'Out of my chair!'.   
Said Gangrene: 'I was just making sure everything was in Perfect Working Order’.  
Said Dread Wing: 'I will not have you, or anyone else wear that helmet! Consider it my crown', and seated himself and wore it. Quoth he: 'Activate the Brain-Enslaver!', and Gangrene answered: 'Yes, Lord Dread Wing', and obeyed.   
On Airlandis, Aaron said: 'Somehow, Dread must have picked you up as soon as you hit the surface. I don't know how; so we're going to try a little False Advertising'. To Skywatch he added: 'Boot up “Operation Trojan Horse”', and Skywatch did so.   
Aaron explained: 'This is what Dread Wing will see: four Dragonators, en route to Sector B-4. These signals are a second team of Dragonators, acting as a decoy. Meanwhile, you will flat-hat from the city to Sector B-7, and complete the real Amber run'.   
Said Peak: 'What if you're wrong? What if there really is a traitor in Airlandis?'.   
Said Aaron: 'Only we six will know the first team's destination, is a decoy; even they will believe they are flying a Normal Mission'.   
Said Apex: 'What happens to them?'.   
Said Aaron: 'I will order them back as soon as you leave the city. They'll be home before Dread realizes he's been tricked', and put his plan into action. Skywatch announced: 'Dragon Flyz Team Two! dragonators Zarkan, Aemod, Chris, and Nora: cleared for take-off for Amber run; destination: Sector B-4, 30 degrees South-by-Southwest'.   
Said Zarkan: 'D-2 Alert! We have a Situation!', and the four took to the air on their exo-wings, with the usual cry of 'Maximise!', and settled upon their Dragons. Zarkan's 'Thunder' roared, and the four dragons spread their wings and flew. Team One waited on another runway, and Peak said: 'O.K., Stormy; that's our cue! Hey, take it easy, Big Guy; what's wrong? What did I do?'; for Storm had snarled at him. Said Zenith: 'Strap it, Peak; let's move', and Team One's dragons took to the sky, with roars of their own.   
On Warnado, Dread Wing laughed, and said: 'The fools are trying to trick the Master Trickster! Too bad I knew what they were doing'.   
Said Nocturna: 'Dread Wing: four Dragonators have been spotted south of Warnado. Should we dispatch the Gremwings to intercept them?', and Dread answered: 'Take off immediately, and head north with a full squadron of Dark Dramen. That's where the Dragon Flyz are. With this mental marvel of Gangrene's, I can not only hear the dragons' thoughts; I can see the Dragon Flyz! I can see them through their dragons' own eyes!'.   
Above the Warp Winds, Zenith said: 'All right, Flyz; keep it sharp and frosty, and we'll be down there before Dread knows we've left home'. Riptor roared at him, and Zenith added: 'Easy, Riptor! Just a glide in the sky, right?'.   
With Zenith at the point, the team descended earthward, through the Wind Pits; and once on Old Earth, flew low over the land in search of crystals; but they found Nocturna on Nightmare and Fryte on Skunk, waiting for them. Said Zenith: 'Dread Wing knew which team was the decoy!'.   
Said Peak: 'Again?! But how?'.   
Quoth Summit: 'It doesn't matter now! What matters is getting out of here, in one piece!'.   
Said Nocturna: 'Attack them!', and a horde of screeching Gremwings leapt forward.   
Said Zenith: 'On me!', and Team One, still on dragon-back, fought their way through the horde with their Windjammers.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Well done, Dragon Flyz; well done'.   
Said Nocturna: 'After them! Dread will revile us if we fail again!'; but Dread's own voice came into her thoughts: 'Brava, Nocturna; I see you know your Master well'.   
Said she: 'Dread Wing?', and he said: 'Yes, my dear. Until now, I have been testing my Brain-Slave machine; but now, I will use it to turn the Dragon against the Fly!'.   
On their flight, Zenith said: 'I think we lost them!'.   
Said Apex: 'Blazewind: do you sense the Amber? We must be on top of it, by now'.   
Blazewind roared at her instead of an answer, for Dread Wing had whispered into his mind: 'Listen to me, mighty beasts. The Dragon Flyz are your enemies. They treat you as slaves; not allies. You must no longer obey them'.   
With that, Blazewind collided on purpose with Riptor, which nearly threw Zenith from the saddle. Said Apex: 'Blaze: what's wrong?!'.   
Zenith regained his seat and answered: 'No harm done! Stay on course!'.   
Dread Wing tried again: 'Destroy your enemies! Tear the Dragon Flyz apart, once and for all!'. Wing-Storm threw Peak against a Wind Pit, and Peak caught a spike of rock as he fell, to save himself.   
Quoth Summit: 'Peak! Hang on! Fury: what are you doing?!'; for she had snapped at him.   
Said Apex: 'The dragons are going crazy! I can't communicate with them any more! They shut me out!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Dread's behind this! I can feel it!'.   
Dread Wing answered: 'I can feel it too, Zenith; I can feel it in my very bones! The beauty of your suffering, pulses in my blood! The day of your downfall by your own dragons, will be the day of my triumph, of my mind over all that matters!'.   
Peak still hung from the mountain-side. Said Zenith: 'Abandon dragons! Go to exo!', and the Flyz said: 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!' and took to the air on their exo-wings.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Yes! I can taste their bitter defeat. Now: finish them!', and the dragons prepared to do so. Blazewind seized Apex in his jaws. Fury tried to catch Summit; but he shot a stunning-blast at her, and she retreated. Riptor snapped at Zenith, and missed. Peak’s ledge slipped from the mountain-side, and Apex called: 'Dragonator down!'; Zenith on his exo-wings caught Peak, lowered him to the floor, and said: 'Come on, Peak; this is your wake-up call!'. Riptor swept on them, and Zenith called to him; but Riptor snapped at Zenith again, and missed.   
Said Dread Wing: 'An angry dragon, can be a real Drag’.  
Zenith heard him, and called: 'Dread Wing! Show yourself, face to face! Where are you?!'; but Riptor snapped at Zenith again, and missed. Blazewind threw Apex, who took to the air on her exo-wings. Riptor stood over Zenith, who said: 'Riptor: it's me; it's Zenith. What’s the matter with you?'. Riptor smelt him and quieted, and Zenith continued: 'That's it; I knew you'd remember me', and the other Dragon Flyz landed nearby.   
Said Zenith: 'Apex: I think the dragons can be stopped. They don't want to hurt us; something's got a hold of them. Try to get through to them!'.   
Said Apex: 'I can try; but I can't make any guarantees. Blaze! Riptor! Wing-Storm! Sky-Fury! You are our Best Friends! “Man and Dragon Fly as One”;–– remember? A dragon and its rider cannot be separated!', and the dragons heard this and were calmed.   
Said Peak: 'So it was just a Bad Dream; I knew it!', and Wing-Storm shame-facedly bent his head into Peak's arms. Fury did the same to Summit, Blazewind to Apex, and Riptor to Zenith, who said: 'There you are, Riptor; I knew you were in there somewhere!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'No! You must not be tricked! More power, Gangrene; someone is turning the dragons' wills against me. I need more power!'.   
Said Gangrene: 'Power is nothing, without Control'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'I am in Control! Now boost the power, so I can destroy the Dragon Flyz!'.   
The dragons roared in distress, and Apex said: 'Someone is controlling the dragons, inside their heads! It's too strong; I can't break them free! They're being forced against their will;–– get back!', and Wing-Storm swiped at Peak, who rolled aside. Riptor sprang at Zenith, but missed, and knocked himself senseless against the mountain-side.   
On Warnado, the excess of power had overcome the Brain-Enslavement Device.   
Said Gangrene: 'My invention! What have you done to my miraculous invention!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'What's happening? I've lost connection to the dragons! Fix that bloody machine as fast as you can!', and left the laboratory. Gangrene wept over his machine, and gave Dread Wing a snarl; but he obeyed.   
Outside, the Dragons returned to their old friendship with their riders, and Summit said: 'Holy Duncan! That was a close one!'.   
Said Apex: 'Someone is controlling the dragons, telepathically!'.   
Said Zenith: 'That someone is Dread Wing; it was his voice I heard, during the fight, inside my head!'.   
Said Peak: 'I say it's time we get inside his head; and I'm not talking telepathically!'.   
With that, the Flyz approached Warnado, and found two Dark Dramen on guard at the northern entrance.   
Said Zenith: 'Apex, come with me. You two stay with the dragons!'. Apex stunned one Dramen with her Windjammer, and Zenith struck down the other with a punch.   
In the laboratory, Gangrene rebuilt his machine, and whispered to it: 'O my invention! O my invention! Dread Wing only wants to abuse you; but only I know how to take care of you (and take care of him!)'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Gangrene! Is the machine operational now?’.  
Gangrene answered: 'Now it's my turn to play, Dread, a mind-game of my own! I'm warning you, Dread Wing: step back! I am the only one who can control the dragons!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Have you lost your mind? Take that helmet off! I told you, “it's mine”, and what are you doing?!'.   
Said Gangrene: ‘Not only have I not lost my mind; I’m ready to take hold of yours! I have been waiting for this moment for so very long!'; and with the reconstructed machine, he lifted Dread Wing, and smote him against the wall. Meanwhile: Zenith and Apex flew on their exo-wings through the eerie yellowish tunnels of Warnado, in search of them.   
In the laboratory, Gangrene said: 'Dread Wing: every knee shall bend before me! To-day marks the dawn of a New Age: the Age of Gangrene, the Great and Mighty! Ruler of All Earth: Above and Below!’.  
In swept Zenith, raised his Windjammer, and said: 'Don't get too cosy in that bad hat, Gangrene; you look a little foolish'.   
Said Gangrene: 'No, Zenith; you are the fool! See: I can control your every move, like a puppet on strings! With this machine, your power is nothing, and mind is everything! –No! What is happening to my beautiful machine?!'; for as he spoke, Apex shot his electrical source from behind, and answered: 'I am'.   
Said he: 'You'll regret that, Dragon Fly; I still have enough power to destroy your mind, and rule the world! I can out-last you until the Stars burn out!'; and their telepathic struggle brought Apex to her knees. Outside Warnado, Fury seemed about to attack Peak and Summit, and Peak said: 'Here we go again'; but Apex still fought Gangrene, and the excess of power overcame the Brain-Enslavement Device, more terribly than before.   
Said Gangrene: 'I could have had everything'; but Apex, though she had no machine of her own, lifted Gangrene from his throne and threw him against Dread Wing, while his machine burst into pieces, valve by valve. Small explosions sprang from every component of the dreadful apparatus, and Zenith lifted the exhausted Apex and bore her and himself, on exo-wings, from Warnado.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Shut it down! Turn off the machine!'; but Gangrene could only wait, while the machine tore itself to pieces, and finally rose from the Mouth of Warnado, in the form of a gigantic ball of fire. Said Apex: 'Did I win?', and Zenith answered: 'Yeah, you did it, Apex: you beat Dread. See what you can do when you put your mind to it?'.   
On the ground, Fury roared against at Summit; then tipped him backward with an affectionate kiss. Said Peak: 'Now that's what I call “a Big Wet One”!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Yeah; it looks like Apex managed to change their minds'.   
Said Zenith: 'She sure did! I hope you're feeling better', and the dragons nodded.   
Quoth Summit: 'That's enough, Fury; I forgive you already!'; but she kissed him again, many times, and Peak said: 'I think we should give these two some Private-Time, while they kiss and make up!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Hey; come back!', and the Dragon Flyz remounted their dragons, collected their crystals, and returned to Airlandis.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not a very nice episode, in my opinion; but it was part of this history and could not be avoided. 
> 
> No doubt, Apex's final psychokinetic feat, took advantage of a lot of loose energy, released by the collapse of the machine.


	18. The Portal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the Dragon Flyz learn a surprising secret of their own past…

We next join our heroes in an aerial battle with a horde of screeching Gremwings, which attacked the Dragons and their riders on all sides. Quoth Summit: 'We have a Gremwing Convention here! Has anybody got a spare wing?'.   
Peak shot three more Gremwings, and a fourth bit him upon the left shoulder. Quoth he: 'Sorry, Bro; I'm a little busy myself!', and tore the Gremwing off, and shot it. Quoth he: 'Storm! Let's flip them the singer!', and Wing-Storm struck an Immelmann turn to confront the Gremwings behind.   
Said Peak: 'Hey Gremwings! Isn't it funny that three legs and two wings make for no brains?', and shot them.  
Said Nocturna on Nightmare: 'Very clever, Boy, against Gremwings! Let's see if you can handle something higher on the Evolutionary Scale!', and charged Nightmare at them.   
Said Peak: 'Storm: do you remember that little dance-move we practiced last week? Dragon Flyz, maximise!', and he and Wing-Storm separated: Peak flew upward, and Wing-Storm downward, and Nightmare passed harmlessly between them. When she turned to attack again, Peak shot Nocturna off her back with his Windjammer; but she spread her wings and flew, and fumed at him.   
Elsewhere, Dread Wing on Blackheart was in pursuit of Zenith and Riptor. When Dread Wing raised his blaster, his enemies turned, and the two dragons snapped at each-other. Fryte on Skunk menaced Zenith from above; but Blazewind knocked him from the saddle, and Apex called: 'Heads up, Zenith!', who gave her a sign of thanks. Nocturna regained her seat on Nightmare, and Dread Wing looked up at Summit and Sky-Fury, who shot down two more Gremwings. To them came Peak on Wing-Storm, and Peak said: 'It's going; going; gone!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Dragon Flyz win six; Gremwings, zero!', while Fury mangled another Gremwing in her jaws, and threw it to the lava-pits. The Gremwings retreated; Fryte and Skunk, and Nocturna on Nightmare did the same; and Dread Wing on Blackheart retreated first of all, with the last defiance: 'He who flies away, lives to fight another day!'.   
Said Apex: 'We have them on the run!', and said Zenith: 'Let's keep them that way! I want them as far from Airlandis as we can!'; by which we may deduce, that the mutants had attacked Airlandis, and the Dragon Flyz forced their withdrawal. Said Peak: 'Hoo-hoo! Hey, hold up! I want “in” on this drag-race!'.   
With that, the Dragon Flyz pursued their enemies for several kilometers, right behind them. Said Dread Wing: 'Faster! Faster! We'll lose them in the hills'; and this they did.   
Said Zenith: 'Hey Apex: check that out; right below us!'; for under them as they flew, was a great white ziggurat, surrounded by a pentagram of brown stone ridges.   
Said Peak: 'Don't let these drags lag! Dread's getting away!', but Summit answered: 'Whoa! What's that?!', and looked at the ziggurat.   
Said Zenith: 'I don't know; but we're going to find out', and telephoned: 'Skywatch: this is Zenith reporting! Mark co-ordinates; I've never seen anything like this: a configuration of hills, a ridge, forming a perfect star-shape when seen from above!'.   
Said Aaron: 'A five-pointed star. Dragon Flyz One: this is Aaron! Is there anything in the centre of this ridge?'.   
Zenith answered: 'Yes, there is; I'm not exactly sure of what, though. I request authorization to land and explore the area'.   
Aaron answered him: 'No; under no conditions do you set down! Restricted Clearance! Return to Airlandis immediately! That is an order, Dragon Flyz! Get out of there now!', and they obeyed.   
On Airlandis, the Dragon Flyz convened in Aaron's library. Said Peak: 'I think the Old Man is losing it'.   
Said Apex: 'He lost something, Peak; and I've a feeling we're going to find out what'.   
Said Aaron: 'There's something I have to show you, here', and opened a secret panel on his book-case (disguised behind three books), to reveal a disc-reader, into which he inserted a disc.   
From his table emerged a holograph-projector, and from the projector emerged a trimensional image of a tall, elegant, handsome lady.   
Said Peak: 'Is that her?', and Zenith answered: 'Yes; it's our mother'.   
A strain of music filled the air, and Apex said: 'That music: I remember it!'.   
Said Aaron: 'She played it all the time; it was her favorite', and the image spoke: 'Hello, my children. This message is for all of you: Zenith, Summit, Apex, and Peak. And Aaron, my love: this message is most of all for you. I am sorry I could not be there for you. I know you don't agree with what I'm about to do; and if you're hearing this message, you were probably right, and I have failed. But if the Star Ridge is a gateway to Another Place, a New Home for All of Us, it will be Worth the Risk! I love you all. Please take care of Peak; if he can forgive me, I will live in all your hearts, for ever'. With that, the image faded, and the projector sank.   
Said Aaron: 'Peak: you were barely a few months old when she recorded that message, 17 years ago. She found the same Star Ridge you stumbled upon to-day, and she was headstrong; she was sure it was the passage to all our hopes and dreams. Now, this disc and my memories are all I have left', and Peak wept, and left the library. His brothers followed, and Apex stayed to hear their father say: 'We searched for her for months. I never stopped looking, or hoping, to find her at last'; then hurried after them.   
They found Peak on the runway, and Zenith called: 'Peak: hold up! Didn't you hear what Father said?'.   
Peak answered: 'No; I only heard what Mother said. I'm going back to the Star Ridge, and don't you try to stop me!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'I'm not trying to stop you; I'm coming with you, Little Brother'.   
Apex added: 'Me too! Zenith: do you think, after all these years, there's any chance she's still alive?'.   
Zenith answered: 'If there is: it's a chance we have to take. It looks like Mother's not the only one headstrong in this family; I'm in!', and all four took to the sky on their exo-wings, and with the usual call of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', mounted their dragons and rode back to Old Earth.   
Aaron watched them go, and Dram asked: 'Where are they going?'.   
Aaron answered: 'Into the heart of something they don't understand. I can't let them go alone, Dram; we have to go after them!'.   
Said Dram: 'Say no more; I'll ready my dragon', and did so.   
On Old Earth, the Dragon Flyz rediscovered the Star Ridge, and dismounted their dragons before it. Quoth Summit: 'How old is this place?', and Zenith answered: 'I don't know. It seems to be in Perfect Condition; no distress whatsoever!'.   
Said Peak: 'Hey! Over here! It looks like a Way In!', and went inside himself.   
Said Apex: 'Wait Peak! I'm sensing something, and I have a very bad feeling about this place'.   
Said Peak: 'Yeah: I do too. It's called “the sense of being lied to”'; but as he spoke, a four-legged carnivore of half his size pounced upon him, and forced him from the Ziggurat: a strange sort of animal, with the body of a cat, the head of a flea, and neither hair nor scales. Summit raised his Windjammer; but Zenith called: 'Don't fire! You'll hit Peak!', and Wing-Storm seized the attacker in his mouth instead, and threw it over the nearest ridge.   
Said Apex: 'Peak: are you all right?!', and he answered: 'Yeah; a faceful of fangs never stopped me before', and took Summit's hand, who pulled him upright and said: 'I think Wing-Storm showed that beast a new way to fly: without wings!', and both turned to Wing-Storm, who raised his own wings in victory.   
Elsewhere, Dram and Aaron on Titan were in search of the Dragon Flyz, above the lava-flows. Said Dram: 'We've lost them', and they rode still further. Aaron telephoned: 'Aaron to Skywatch! Scan and lock the exact position of Dragon Flyz One!'.   
Skywatch answered: 'Roger that, Aaron. They're north of Sector F-2'.   
Said Dram: 'That's not far from here', and steered Titan in the right direction.   
In the Ziggurat, Summit shone his headlamp on small animals, and asked: 'What about “Beastie-Boy” back there? Maybe he had a beast-friend'.   
Said Apex: 'No; it's clear', and the others lit their headlamps and pricked themselves forward.   
Said Peak: 'I've got a door here!', and tried to open it.   
Quoth Summit: 'Let me try!', and opened it himself.   
Said Zenith: 'Wait; I don't know what we'll find in there, but we have to be prepared for the Worst'.   
Said Peak: 'Worse than deception by our own Father? I'm ready for it!', and he, Summit, and Apex somersaulted into the next room. All three stared in shock at the things they found there; and Zenith, after them, stared too.  
Outside the Ziggurat, the Dragons stood peacefully near their landing-sites, and grazed on moss. They had a mouthful each, when one of Dread Wing's spies saw them, and reported it to him.   
Within the ziggurat, the Dragon Flyz stood before an immense computer-laboratory, in which the center of the floor, set apart in the form of a Pentagon by eight computer-desks at four of the vertices, surrounded a small tower of machinery, separated from the floor itself by four narrow columns. The whole chamber was dimly lit, and seemed to occupy the focus of the Ziggurat.   
Summit tripped on a motion-sensor, and a video-screen on the wall displayed the image of an officer in uniform, whose voice pronounced, from loudspeakers on other walls: 'Greetings, visitors. I am Captain Jonathan Lance of the Starship “Explorer”. We are a Civilian Transport, bound for the Outer Limits of the Galaxy, in hopes of a New World to call Home. The Portal you see before you, is a Direct Link to the “Explorer”, and the Door is always open to any other survivors who may join us'. With that, the image faded.   
Said Peak: 'We've got to get it back!', and the others approached the control-panels.   
Said Zenith: 'I've seen this type of circuitry before, but never Up Close. Does it make any sense to you, Summit?', who answered: 'It could have been a Faulty Relay that interrupted the Transmission'.   
Peak, meanwhile, turned to the Portal itself; which, as said before, resembled a small tower of machinery, separated from the floor itself by four narrow columns.   
Said Apex: 'Peak: what are you doing?!', who answered: 'Mother is in there; I know it! Father gave up on her; but I won't'.   
In came Aaron, and said: 'No, Peak! I lost your mother to whatever lies on the other side of that Portal; I won't lose you as well!'.   
Outside, Titan roared instructions to Dram; who in obedience to her, entered the Ziggurat himself.   
Said Dread Wing, who watched him go: 'Just in time for a Tearful Family Reunion; just before I tear apart the Family Tree, limb-by-limb. Nocturna: prepare the drag-nets! Fortune has chosen to shine upon us, this day!', and Nocturna obeyed.   
Inside, Peak asked his father: 'Are you telling me: we're not even going to try to save her?!', and Aaron answered: 'Peak: listen to me! After 17 years, it's not possible your Mother could have survived! She's gone, Son; she's in a Higher Place than even Airlandis! Trust me'.   
Peak answered: 'How could I trust you again?', and Aaron said: 'All right; if this is what it takes to regain that trust: so be it!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Can you operate this thing, Father?', who answered: 'It's nothing like our Amber Crystals; this is centuries-old technology: chips, integrated circuits, transistors! I've had some experience with it. I'll see what I can do; there must be a re-set button somewhere;–– here!', and pressed it. At once, the Portal came alive. Everyone gazed about in awe, and Summit in suspicion; and Peak advanced on the Portal itself.   
Outside the Ziggurat, the dragons did not notice their enemies, until the Dark Dramen threw nets over them, and held them fast. Immediately the dragons' cries of distress reached their comrades within, and Apex translated them: 'Dark Dramen are attacking the Dragons! Come on!', and led her brothers into the open. Peak and Aaron stayed behind; and while Aaron worked the controls, Peak stepped into the Portal, and it swept him away into the Starship 'Explorer'.   
Apex asked: 'What happened?', and Aaron answered: 'Peak went through the Portal; he's gone!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Can we get him back?', and Aaron answered: 'We have to; but I'll need time'.  
In Deep Space, Peak appeared aboard the Starship 'Explorer', in an enclosed, transparent crow's-nest on one of its masts; and set off down the corridor, to search the main decks.   
On Earth, Dram lay in ambush to surprise some Dark Dramen; and when they fired on him, he and the other Dragon Flyz returned fire from the doors of the Ziggurat, while Aaron typed quickly on the controls. A plasma-blast stunned Summit, and two Dramen entered; but Zenith and Dram felled them at once.   
Said Apex: 'Are you all right?', and Summit answered: 'Yeah; only my pride's a little bruised!', and stood, while Aaron typed more quickly yet.   
Said Zenith: 'How much longer?', and Aaron answered: 'Almost;–––' but before he could finish, Fryte leapt on Zenith, and pressed him against a control-panel. When Dram pulled him off, Fryte's blaster was fired awry, and shattered the console at which Aaron still worked. Said Aaron: 'It's all right! He only hit the back-up system! But you must keep them at bay; one more hit, and we could close the Portal for ever!', and both sides fought on. To the door came Nocturna, and threw a timed bomb into the control-room.  
In Deep Space, Peak found his mother playing her favorite piece upon a Grand Piano.   
On Earth, Dread Wing called on his enemies: 'Dragon Flyz! You are surrounded and your Dragons captured! There is no escape! Surrender now, and I promise you will not be harmed!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Something tells me he had his fingers crossed behind his back when he said that!'. Nocturna threw another timed bomb, and the Dragon Flyz scattered from it.   
Said Zenith: 'Father: we can't hold them long!', and Aaron answered: 'I'm almost done!'.   
The Dark Dramen rushed into the control-room, with Nocturna behind, and the Dragon Flyz shot stunning-blasts at them. Nocturna dodged the shots and struck down Zenith; Summit raised his Windjammer against her; Fryte wrestled Summit to the ground, and all over the floor; and Dread Wing seized Apex, while Aaron typed more quickly than ever. Dram smote Nocturna; Zenith rescued Apex; and Summit freed himself.   
In Deep Space, Peak said: 'Mother? Is it really you? It's Peak!'; but before she could answer, or take the hands as he reached for her, Aaron re-opened the Portal, and swept him back to Earth.   
Said Peak: 'What? Where? No! You brought me back; but I've found her!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Miranda? Alive? Then I can bring her back, too! I know I can, and I must!', and set himself to work.   
Said Zenith: 'There's no time! Watch it!'; and he and the other dragonators protected their father and brother, while the mutants fired on them without cease. The Dramen's plasma-blasts missed the dragonators, but struck the electrical batteries that still fuelled the Portal's controls, and smashed the controls themselves into pieces. Dread Wing and the Dramen charged at the Dragon Flyz, who shot back at them, more fiercely than ever; and with more Windjammer shots to face than before, most of the Dramen were killed, and Dread and his officers retreated backward for the exit. Quoth Summit: 'There's our way out! Come on!', and carried his father into the open, through a hole made by the Dramen's blasts; and the others followed.   
Meanwhile, the alternation of plasma-blasts and Windjammer fire had disestablished the Ziggurat, and it fell apart all around them. Peak spared a backward glance, as the Portal collapsed; and Zenith caught him and drew him from the room. When the Dragon Flyz emerged from the Ziggurat, their dragons tore themselves free of Dread Wing's dragnets, and bellowed at the Gremwings who guarded them. Said Dram: 'I see why they call him “Riptor”! So much for Dread's net!', and laughed.   
Said Peak to Zenith: 'Let me go! I'm going back for her!'; but Zenith answered: 'There's nothing to go back to! It's gone, Peak!'.   
Sure enough: the Ziggurat's internal machinery exploded on all sides, and the edifice itself fell in pieces. Said Apex: 'Come on! We have to get out of here, while we still can!', and the dragonators mounted their dragons.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Stop them, Nocturna! They're getting away!’.  
Nocturna answered: 'Empty-handed! Whatever it was, in there, they obviously wanted badly enough to risk their own destruction. Now they'll never have it! But you will one day have your victory over them; and when that day comes, Dread Wing, you will not be denied'. Even as she spoke, the Ziggurat collapsed altogether. The Dramen fled, and Nocturna fled; but Dread Wing stood before the Ziggurat as it fell, and only when no stone supported another, he returned to Warnado.   
On Airlandis, Peak came to see Aaron in his Observatory, and Aaron said: 'Peak: it was wrong of me to keep that disc from you. It was a mistake; I'm sorry. Your Mother loved you more than I can tell. Tell me: when you saw her, did she say anything?'.   
Peak answered: 'She didn't have to! I saw it in her eyes: she knows we'll find her one day; and whenever we do, she'll be waiting for us;–– all of us', and embraced his father. All disagreement between them was forgiven, and Airlandis flew on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most fanfic writers, use this episode as the basis for their finales. So do I.


	19. Dread Rules

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Dread Wing's favorite daydream, and our heroes' worst nightmare, briefly becomes a reality…

We next join our heroes on a bright, cheerful day in Airlandis. Dragon Flyz Team Three had just returned from their patrol. Some children played kick-ball in a park; and in the Rainforest Bio-Sphere, Aaron explained to Apex: 'This is the Banyan Tree. We have only two in the Bio-Sphere; but once there were huge forests of these trees on Old Earth, before the Cataclysm'.  
A monkey settled on Apex's shoulder, and she laughed at him and said: 'Father: I bet you know all the names of all these plants!'.  
On they went, with the monkey still on Apex's shoulder, and Aaron answered: 'Someone must know them, Apex. This is not just a Museum, you know; someday, all the flora and fauna we tend here, must be planted in their native soil, on Old Earth'.  
The monkeys screamed, and Apex asked: 'Hey! What did I do wrong?'; but the Bio-Sphere trembled, and so too did all Airlandis.  
At the Crystal Reactors, Orac's assistants typed at their controls, and Orac inspected the machines; but to no avail. In came Joshua and asked: 'Orac: what's happening?', who answered: 'Take a guess! The Amber-level in the reactor is too low: that's what's happening!'.  
Said Joshua: 'Can you shut down the auxiliaries and back-ups, and siphon all power to the Mains?', and Orac answered: 'I can, and I did! That'll only give us a Few Extra Hours! We'll be running on “Empty” unless we get some fresh Crystals!'.  
Said Zenith: 'I want Dragonator Team One ready in five minutes!'.  
Said Joshua: 'Wait! This is too critical for one squadron alone! I'm authorizing a D-4 Alert'.  
Quoth Summit: '“D-4”?! That's “all available Dragonators”! You'd leave Airlandis wide-open to attack!'.  
Said Joshua: 'Are you questioning my orders, Dragon Fly?’.  
Summit answered: 'You know: at someone who sits behind a Desk all day, and never rode a dragon in his life, I'm trying really hard not to lose my temper'.  
Said Zenith: 'You're not trying hard enough. Joshua: consider it done', and the two dragonators left the room, to summon their colleagues.  
Said Joshua: 'Why are you looking at me like that, Orac? Don't you have your reactors to attend?', and left the room himself, to speak to his own.  
On Old Earth, Dread Wing on Blackheart, Nocturna on Nightmare, Fryte on Skunk, and a squadron of Dark Dramen on their dragons flew into a canyon, where Vydak awaited them with his followers. Nocturna and Fryte dismounted on the canyon-walls, while Dread and the others alighted before Vydak; and Nocturna said: 'Look at them, Fryte: there must be thousands of them!'.  
Said Fryte: 'Dread Wing could take over Whole Planet, if he want!'.  
Said Nocturna: 'If Vydak could keep his word; but I don't trust that Dramen', and Fryte answered: '“Any more than you trust Dread”, you mean!'.  
Said Dread Wing: 'All right, Vydak; we'll join our armies together, but make no mistake: I shall rule Airlandis, alone'.  
Said Vydak: 'Of course, Dread Wing. My satisfaction will be in watching the Airlandians fall'. The two warlords clasped hands, and Nocturna flew into the midst of Vydak's soldiers and said: 'Be nice, boys! Now that we're all one big happy military family, let's start behaving like one! I want three squadrons to take off immediately on patrol of the area around the camp'. The squadrons' leaders turned to Vydak, who nodded; and with his approval thus assured them, they spread their wings and flew to the patrol.  
From Airlandis, flew Team One on their dragons; but Summit still complained of Joshua: 'That paper-pushing, cloud-hugging Bureaucrat is going to hear from me when we get back to Airlandis!'.  
Said Zenith: 'Let it go, Summit. If we don't get some Amber, there won't by any Airlandis to get back to'.  
Quoth Summit: 'Don't lecture me, Zenith. I know not to cross the line; but if it wasn't for us, Joshua would be shovelling dragon-dung for Dread Wing!', and the team turned their course to the Wind Pits.  
Once on Old Earth, Zenith said: 'O.K., Dragon Flyz; we have a good-looking lava-band at 10.00. Let's line them up, drag-and-grab, by the book'.  
Said Apex: 'Copy that: cover-to-cover!'. Peak added: 'By the book;–– as long as the book is The World According to Peak', and Wing-Storm looped the loop. Zenith pointed the others to a deposit of crystals, and every Dragon seized one in its claws. One of Vydak's minions saw them go, and Sky-Fury roared an alarm. Quoth Summit: 'I saw him, Fury!', and they turned to catch him. From a broken natural arch of stone, descended more Dark Dramen on their dragons, and attacked Summit and Fury from the rear; but Summit pulled Fury up, and she flew over the Dramen on their dragons, and reversed the order of pursuit. Summit shot at them with his Windjammer, and Peak heard him and said: 'Zenith: we've got some serious vox-box chatter from that canyon'.  
Said Zenith: 'It's Summit! Let's go!', and all the team hastened to the rescue.  
Zenith added: 'Drop the Amber!', and Peak agreed: 'It'll only slow us down! Summit's history if we don't burn some wing!'. At once, all the dragons discarded their crystals, and flew the faster.  
Summit and Sky-Fury were surrounded, and low over the lava, when the others saved them. Said Zenith: 'Summit: are you O.K.?', and Summit answered: 'Look out!', when another squadron of Dramen advanced upon them.  
Said Zenith: 'We're out of here! Let's hit the skies!', and Apex added: 'And hit them hard!', and the Dragon Flyz retreated.  
At the enemies' camp, one of Dread Wing's Dramen wrestled on foot with one of Vydak's, while the two warlords watched from afar, when the scout returned with news. Said Dread Wing: 'Trouble at home, Vydak?', who answered: 'Trouble that may turn the battle against us, Dread Wing: the four Dragon Flyz just attacked one of our patrols!'.  
Said Dread Wing: 'Don't worry that ugly little head of yours; they know nothing of our true intentions'.  
Said Vydak: 'What if they return, and discover our camp?'. Dread Wing answered: 'If they return, they'll discover more than our camp; they'll discover just how fragile Life can be!', and laughed.  
On Airlandis, trepidation spread over the city; for the Dragon Flyz had returned without any crystal. Summit worried most (for it was his own fault), and Zenith gave him an encouraging smile; but at that moment, all Airlandis trembled, and Orac said: 'Let me see those crystals; we need to get them to the Reactor right away!'.  
Said Zenith: 'We have plenty of them, but we had to dump them'.  
Said Orac: '“Dump them”? Why?!'. Zenith answered: 'We had no choice; we had to protect Summit! He was about to be shredded by a squad of Dark Dramen'.  
Said Joshua: 'Wasn't he with the rest of you?. Summit answered: 'No; I took off to rest-and-relax and did a little sight-seeing! Is that O.K., Josh?', who said: 'No; it's not O.K. Your irresponsible behaviour has put all Airlandis in jeopardy!'.  
At that moment, Team Two landed on the runway, and Zarkan dismounted first. Said he: 'We did it! A full load of Amber!'.  
Said Orac: 'Good going, Zarkan!', and his assistants loaded the crystals onto diagravitic carts. Joshua watched them, and said: 'Summit: for Conduct Unbecoming a Dragonator, you are Hereby Removed from Duty until Further Notice!'.  
Said Peak: 'Wait a minute! You can't do that!', and said Apex: 'You're just trying to make him an Example!'.  
Said Joshua: 'Someone must be held accountable'. Summit answered: 'Yes, you will!', and threw him to the floor. Said Joshua: 'Get your hands off me! Zarkan: escort Summit to the brig. The wild cur needs to be leashed, and caged!', and Zarkan led the way to the brig, while two of his teammates carried Summit behind him, who said: 'Zenith: take the Dragon Flyz to the canyon in Sector B-4! Something big is going to happen there; I know it!'.  
Said Joshua: 'For the time being: Dram will replace Summit on your team, and I don't want you near that canyon again! That's an order; understand?!', and left them.  
Said Peak: 'I don't believe this: Summit risks his life, fighting Dark Dramen, and all he gets is a one-way ticket to Jail!'.  
Said Apex: 'I'll tell Father; he'll put a stop to this, right here and now!'.  
Said Zenith: 'Apex: wait. I think we have something more important to do'.  
Said Peak: 'Are you with us, Dram?', who answered: 'You need not ask'.  
Skywatch answered Zenith: 'You can't take off without a flying-order!', and Zenith said: 'We'll fill one when we get back, in triplicate!'; and with the usual call of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', Team One took to the air on their exo-wings, and mounted their dragons; then turned their course Eastward. On his way to the brig, Summit watched them go, and said: 'I'm with you Guys; good luck!', as they flew through the Wind Pits to the world below.  
Once on Old Earth, Dram asked: 'What are we looking for, Zenith?', who answered: 'There were definitely too many Dark Dramen down there, who were too anxious to keep us from something. All right, Team: keep your jammers warm and your senses on full boil! We're almost there!', and they rode into the canyon.  
Dread Wing asked Fryte: 'Are the plasma-relays in place?', and Fryte answered: 'Yes, Dread Wing'.  
Said Vydak: 'Here they come: four of them!', as Team One flew into view.  
Said Dread Wing: 'The time has come for the Dragon Flyz to neutralize, for good!'; but Riptor sounded a warning, and the dragons scattered, just as Dread exploded a dozen mines in the canyon's wall, and thereby showered rocks on them. Said Zenith: 'Head for the walls!', and the dragons alighted on the floor of an abri, where Dread had set no mines. When the dust cleared, Vydak and Dread came to the edge of the canyon, and Vydak said: 'First, the Dragon Flyz; then, Airlandis!', and flew on his own wings, to investigate.  
Said Dread Wing: 'And then, Vydak, will be your turn', and laughed.  
Said Vydak as he flew: 'As soon as we're done with Airlandis, I will bury you with the Dragon Flyz, Dread Wing', and laughed to himself.  
On Airlandis, the message was broadcast: 'Dragonator One, this is Skywatch. Come in, Dragonator One! Zenith! Apex! Peak! Dram! Anyone! Answer, please!'; but there was no answer.  
In came Joshua and asked: 'Any word?'. Aaron answered him: 'None; and you should know something else, Josh: if anything wrong happens to my children, I will hold you personally responsible!’.  
Said Joshua: 'I see where the Dragon Flyz get their arrogance! There's no room for Reckless Behavior!'. Aaron answered: 'The only Reckless Behavior was yours! I heard about the quarrel this morning! The Dragon Flyz are only trying to protect Airlandis; without them, the city would have fallen long ago!'.  
Said Skywatch: 'I'm picking up a signal on the monitor!', and Aaron said: 'The Dragon Flyz?–– No', for it was not.  
Sirens rang all over Airlandis. Dragons rose from their eyries, and their riders rose to meet them. Cries of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!' filled the air; and so too did the roars of the dragons.  
Said Aemod: 'There's too many of them!'.  
Said Nora: 'Dread must have brought every mutant on Old Earth!'.  
Said Zarkan: 'Then there's no time to lose! Come on!', and he and his dragon 'Thunder' took the lead.  
Said Vydak: 'Dramen!'; said Dread Wing: 'Gremwings!'; and both warlords said: 'Attack!'.  
Plasma-blasts and Windjammers' fire filled the air. Dragons flew this way and that, helter-skelter around each-other: over and under and under and over again. One of Dread Wing's Dramen landed on Nora's dragon, and she knocked him off with both fists and said: 'No charge for the nose-job, Dramen!'.  
Aemod was surrounded by Gremwings, and said: 'They're everywhere!'. Two more dragonators said: 'Watch your backs!', as Nocturna on Nightmare entered the battle, with a fresh horde of screeching Gremwings behind her. He who had spoken was knocked from the saddle as she passed, and recovered himself on his exo-wings. Dragons flew this way and that, helter-skelter around each-other: over and under and under and over again. Said Zarkan: 'Time for the big dive-and-fly, Thunder. Good knowing you, my friend!', and Thunder roared his assent and changed direction. One of Dread Wing's Dramen attacked the Crystal Reactors; but Orac said: 'Nobody touches my Reactor!', and drove him back with the stream of an air-hose, and the Reactors began to withdraw into the body of Airlandis. Aemod called: 'Retreat! Defend the Dome!', and led some of the dragonators to do so. In the brig, Summit heard the noise of battle and called: 'Somebody let me out! I can fight!'; but no one answered.  
Dread himself, on Blackheart, was already on Airlandis. Skywatch and the dragonators shut the bay-doors against him, and he alighted before them and said: 'Nocturna: secure the landing-bay! Fryte: install the plasma-grenades!'. Fryte immediately affixed some explosives to the bay-doors, and Skywatch listened to him and said: 'Look out! Plasma-attack!', and the Dragonators readied their Windjammers. The door burst open.  
In the Skywatch tower, Aaron called: 'Aaron to Zenith! Aaron to Apex! Come in!'.  
Said Joshua: 'Aaron, what are you doing? Didn't you hear the explosion?! Dread Wing and Vydak have entered the city!'.  
Said Aaron: 'That's why we need the Dragon Flyz more than ever!'.  
Said Joshua: 'Dread will be here any minute; we have to offer him a Treaty!'.  
Said Aaron: 'Joshua: you're an even bigger fool than I thought, if you think Dread will bargain. We have to reach the Dragon Flyz; it's our only hope!'.  
Plasma-blasts and Windjammers' fire filled the air. Dramen advanced, and fired at every step. Dread and Vydak came into the Skywatch tower on one side; and Nocturna, with two Dramen, on the other.  
Said Joshua: 'As the Duly Elected Representative of the People of Airlandis, I would like to welcome you to the city, and offer you peace'; but Dread answered: 'Silence! Another word and you lose your tongue. I want the man who spawned the Dragon Flyz. Where is Aaron?!'.  
Joshua said: 'He's right over there'; but Aaron had fled, by way of an elevator.  
Said Dread Wing: 'After him! Bring him to the Council Chamber!', and the Dramen hurried in pursuit. Aaron escaped into a tunnel, and one of the Dramen followed him; but Aaron struck him down with a spare panel, and said: 'It will take more than one Dramen to stop a Dragon Fly!', and left him there. The Dramen followed him further; but when he pounced, Aaron ducked, and locked him in the next room.  
Elsewhere, Team Two were cornered by the remaining Dramen, and the other teams likewise all over Airlandis. In the Council Chamber, Dread Wing ordered Joshua: 'Show me the seat of Highest Power!', and Joshua did so. Dread immediately seated himself in it, and said: 'I think I'll take it, and Airlandis too!'.  
In prison, Summit called: 'What's happening out there? Someone; tell me!'; but there was no answer.  
Smoke rose over a defeated Airlandis, and Gremwings and Dark Dramen with their dragons flew over all its streets. Every dragonator was put into chains, and their dragons were whipped and beaten without cause. Dark Dramen walked the streets with their blasters raised, to terrify the people. Aaron, in the meantime, made his way to the brig, to release Summit; but a patrol of Dark Dramen came in his way, and he hid himself and left, with the vow to himself: 'I will be back, Son; I promise!'.  
A Dramen came to Summit instead, and said: 'A dragonator in a cage! Why do humans lock up their own kind?'.  
Summit answered: 'Insubordination'. The Dramen puzzled over the word, and Summit answered: 'Don't strain your brain, or whatever you've got in that scaly skull of yours! –Hey, Cragface! Any news on the Dragon Flyz!'; but the Dramen only laughed and answered: 'Good news! They were crushed, by a rockfall'.  
Quoth Summit: 'That's not possible!', and the Dramen answered: 'I was there! I saw them disappear, under the rubble of a mountain'.  
Quoth Summit: 'You lie! You'll die for it, scale-for-brains!'.  
Said the Dramen: 'But I live! Only ones lying, are the Dragon Flyz, under the rubble!', and left him.  
Sure enough: on Old Earth, the Dragon Flyz lay in the abri, stunned, until Riptor nuzzled Zenith awake. Said Zenith: 'O.K., Rip; I appreciate the concern, but I'm all right! What about the others?'.  
Said Apex: 'I'm all right'.  
Said Dram: 'What about Master Peak?'. Wing-Storm bellowed in distress, and indicated a pile of stones; and the dragonators dug among these, until Peak lay exposed before them.  
Said Apex: 'Peak: can you hear us?'; Peak answered: 'You don't have to shout!', and Wing-Storm laughed.  
The abri had been shut by the fallen rocks; so Zenith said: 'The good news is: we came through the rock-fall in one piece. The bad news is: we have only a few hours' worth of air. Does anyone have an operative Vox Box?'.  
Apex tried hers: 'Apex to Skywatch: come in! Come in!'; but all she received was static, and she answered: 'It's dead'.  
Said Peak: 'And that's what we'll be if we don't blast our way out of here!', and fired on the walls; but the roof only collapsed above them, and Wing-Storm, with squeals of pain, supported it on his shoulders and forced it into place. Said Peak: 'O.K.: so I was a little fast on the trigger! But I can't sit here until our luck and air run out!'.  
Said Apex: 'I'm sure there's a full squadron of Dragonators looking for us right now!'. On Airlandis, Dread Wing answered: 'Airlandis is now under Martial Law. All significant areas have been secured and destroyed, and we expect no difficulty in destroying the last few human dissidents. In recognition of this Great and Glorious Victory, Airlandis shall be for ever known as Necropolis: City of the Dead!', and all the Dramen applauded.  
Said Vydak: 'And what of my Dark Dramen, Lord Dread Wing? Have you forgotten who helped you achieve this Great Victory?'.  
Said Dread Wing: 'Your Dark Dramen shall have their place in my Empire, Vydak; but make no mistake, Mutant: it is my city, and mine alone!'.  
Airlandis trembled, and Dread Wing asked: 'What was that?!'.  
Joshua answered: 'I don't know'. Dread Wing said: 'I assure you: Ignorance is not Bliss'.  
Said Joshua: 'It's Orac; there must be something wrong with the Crystal Reactors'.  
Said Dread Wing: 'Take us to the Crystal Reactors immediately! (This disagreement of ours is not over, Vydak)', and followed Joshua to the Reactors.  
Among the Reactors, Orac hid the most of the crystals under the floor, and said: 'This should give Dread Wing something to worry about!'.  
In came Dread Wing and said: 'Now: what's wrong with my reactor? Why does my city quake?’.  
Orac answered: 'Figure it out, Wing-Head! We have no more Amber! Look for yourself: we're running on “empty”! No Amber; no city!'.  
Said Dread Wing: 'Amber; of course! Nocturna: take two squadrons immediately! We wouldn't want to lose Necropolis for want of crystals'.  
In a watchtower, two Dramen were on guard; but Aaron slipped past them and heard Nocturna say: 'You should come with me! We're taking off immediately for Warnado!'.  
The Dramen followed her from the room, and Aaron shut the doors behind them. Said he: 'Now: to break Summit out!', and set to work on the proper computer. Said he: 'Good! They didn't even think to change the pass-codes yet!'.  
The prison's door opened, and Summit left his cell. Said he: 'What on Old Earth;––? –Father: you're the best!', and recovered his helm. A Dramen lay asleep on duty before him; so Summit woke him, and stunned him more surely. Said he: 'That should teach you to sleep on duty!', and stole his plasma-blaster. With this, he set off down the nearest street; but another Dramen fired on him, and he shot back and ran. Said Nora, in chains, to Aemod and Zarkan: 'Listen! There's still one of us left! It's not over!', and Summit ran still further. Said Fryte: 'A Dragon Fly!'; and Summit stunned him with a plasma-blast. Zarkan took the keys and unlocked his handcuffs and those of his comrades, and Summit entered the eyrie and called for Sky-Fury, who rose to meet him. She came rather too fast for his comfort; and when he ducked, flew over him and pinned the Dark Dramen, who had pursued him, to the ground. Quoth she: 'I'm happy to see you, Summit!', who answered: 'I'm glad to see you too, Fury; you're a sight for this Fly's eyes! Now, let's get out of here! We've got some serious flying to do!', and they escaped.  
In the Skywatch tower, Gangrene said: 'Dread Wing! You've got trouble, all over the city!’.  
Dread Wing answered: 'No, Gangrene; you've got trouble, if you don't know where it's coming from! I want who's-ever doing this, found!'. Alarms rang, and Dread Wing said: 'Boo! What is that?!'.  
Gangrene answered: 'The landing-bays! Someone is taking an unauthorized lift-off!'. These, of course, were Summit and Sky-Fury.  
Said Dread Wing: 'A Dragon Fly! Have you been lying to me, Vydak?', who answered: 'I saw four of them, I'm sure'.  
Said Dread Wing: 'Send out patrols! I want his wings, on a plate'; but Summit on Fury were already away, and in flight toward Old Earth, by way of the Wind Pits. When they emerged, they turned their course to the canyon in Sector B-4. Once there, Summit said: 'O.K.: this is the place. The Dragon Flyz have got to be around here!', and noticed the rockfall. Fury alighted on this, and Summit tried raising the Flyz on the Vox Box; but there was no response. He found Peak's helm among the talus, and said to himself: 'They're gone!'.  
Sky-Fury gave a shriek of distress, and Summit answered: 'I know, Fury: this may be the end of the Dragon Flyz, for ever!'; but Fury's keen sense of smell told her otherwise; and with a roar, she began to dig.  
Said Peak: 'Do you hear that?!'; Dram answered: 'Someone is digging', and Apex added: 'The dragonators! I knew they'd come!'.  
Some of the Dark Dramen rode overhead on their dragons, and Summit said: 'Uh-oh, Fury; we've got company! Keep digging! I'll keep them busy as long as I can! Dragon Flyz, maximise!', and took to the air on his exo-wings. Once air-borne, he dodged a volley of darts; shot the archer from the saddle with both Windjammers; and charged the others. Underground, Blazewind and Riptor started for the talus, and Apex warned her brothers: 'Stand back; I think the Dragons are going to break through'.  
In the air: Summit pounced on a second Dark Dramen, and used his enemy's plasma-blaster to unseat a third. The second Dramen threw Summit onto his dragon's tail; but Summit caught the tail, recovered his footing, and threw the Dramen from the dragon's back, who spread his wings and flew, and abandoned the fight. More Dramen converged on Summit; and underground, his brothers and sister watched anxiously as the Dragons tore the talus from its resting-place. At last: the dragons broke through the rocks, and Blazewind and Riptor grinned at Sky-Fury. Said Zenith: 'I'm beginning to see the light!', and followed them into the open, with Apex, Peak, and Dram behind him.  
Said Apex: 'There's Summit! He's alone!'; Peak answered: 'Not anymore! Come on!', and the dragons roared in agreement. All four mounted their dragons and took to the sky.  
A second Dramen archer closed the distance upon Summit; but in swept Riptor, and Zenith shot the archer from the saddle with his Windjammer. Another Dark Dramen made for Summit's starboard flank; but Dram intervened on his own wings and knocked him from the saddle with a single strong punch, then guided Summit to Zenith, who pointed out the last of their enemies, who was in retreat. Said Peak on Wing-Storm: 'O no you don't! We don't want to spoil the surprise-party for Dread now, do we?', and flew Storm under the enemy's dragon. The archer looked backward for them; and Wing-Storm rose before him instead, and tipped him from the saddle with his tail. With their enemies felled, the Dragon Flyz re-assembled in formation, and returned to Airlandis.  
On Airlandis before their arrival, smoke still rose from conquered buildings, and Dread and Nocturna occupied Aaron's library; but they had not yet destroyed any books. Airlandis trembled, and Dread asked Joshua: 'Why does my city still tremble? Haven't we brought you enough crystals?!'.  
Said Joshua: 'Orac told me, the crystals Vydak's Dark Dramen brought, were defective'.  
Said Dread Wing: 'The saboteur has revealed his face; and it is the face of Vydak! Where is he?!', and Nocturna answered: 'Waiting for you in the Council Chamber, Dread Wing', who went to find him.  
With a squadron of his own Dramen, Dread Wing entered the Council Chamber and called: 'Vydak! Where are you?!', who answered: 'On the Seat of Power, where I belong, Dread Wing!', and beckoned to his followers, who surrounded Dread Wing at once.  
Said Vydak: 'I'm afraid the City of the Dead is having its first Civil War'.  
Said Dread Wing: 'You've made a grave mistake, my treacherous ally: one that will put you in your own grave', and shot a plasma-blast at Vydak, who leapt aside and missed it. At once, Vydak's archers showered darts on Dread Wing's blaster-men, who shot back.  
Meanwhile, the Dragon Flyz returned to the city, and Zenith asked: 'What's going on?'. Summit answered: 'Looks like Dread and Vydak couldn't decide who wears the pants in the family'.  
Said Apex: 'Maybe that means our own family still has a chance!', and led the others to the runway.  
The feud between the Dramen spread into the streets, and onto the runway itself; and the dragonators leapt from their dragons' backs on their exo-wings, with the usual call of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!'.  
Zenith dodged a plasma-blast and said: 'We can slip into the tunnels over the city!', and led the way in these. They were a kilometer or two under the center of the city when they found Team Two en route in the opposite direction.  
Said Zarkan: 'Zenith! You're alive!'. Zenith answered: 'Alive, and ready to kick Dread Wing out of Airlandis!'. With that, Zenith and Zarkan went one way, while the others went another, to attack on two sides at once.  
All over the city, Vydak's archers showered darts on Dread Wing's blaster-men, who shot back. Near the brig, two of Dread Wing's Dramen killed one of Vydak's archers, and Apex said: 'Thanks for doing half our job for us!'; and the two Dramen found themselves confronted by six dragonators (Apex, Peak, Nora, Aemod, Summit, and Dram) and their Windjammers. Said Dram: 'Now; claws up!', and the Dramen obeyed. Dram tied them and left them in a corner, while Summit opened all the cells and said to the dragonators imprisoned therein: 'Come on! You're free! (I know how good that feels!)', and led them to battle.  
Meanwhile, Zenith and Zarkan flanked the door of the Council Chamber; and at Zenith's signal, Zarkan opened it. Within the chamber, the fight continued between Vydak's archers and Dread Wing's blaster-men; and Vydak himself was backed toward the door by Dread Wing, who knocked him down with a single punch. Said Vydak: 'We'll meet again, Dread Wing!', and retreated, with his remnant followers. Said Dread Wing: 'You'll have that day, traitor; it will be your last!', and returned to the Chamber.  
Vydak fled Airlandis on his own wings, and the few of his followers that yet lived, went with him. Dread Wing returned to his own Dramen; but became suspicious, and spotted Zenith half-hidden behind the door-jamb. Said he: 'All units converge on the Central Plaza!', and Zarkan whispered: 'Bad news, Zenith: he's calling for re-enforcements!'.  
Said Zenith: 'We stop him before he makes the call!', and with the usual call of 'Dragon Flyz, maximise!', took to the air on their exo-wings; but found the Dramen waiting for them with raised blasters, outside the Chamber. One of these fired, and Zarkan was wounded, and Dread Wing laughed above them.  
Said he: 'Good-bye, Dragon Fly!', and aimed his own blaster at Zenith, who flew at him and said: 'If you're looking for me, Dread Wing, you're getting hot!', and a dozen dragonators rose into view and surrounded Dread and his followers. With their Windjammers, the dragonators shot the plasma-blasters from the Dramen's hands, and the Dramen fled the city in terror. Said Zenith: 'It's over, Dread', and Dread Wing answered: 'My reign here may be over, Zenith; but I am not! To-day's victory is yours; to-morrow's will be Mine!', and fled himself. Said Peak: 'Shouldn't we go after him?', and Zenith answered: 'To-morrow may be soon enough; let them go, Peak!'. Airlandis was theirs once more.  
Later, all the people applauded their rescuers, and one girl-child gave Apex a bundle of flowers. Quoth Summit: 'So Joshua: while you were spending time as Dread Wing's servant, did you think of the wisdom of doing things my way?', and Joshua answered: 'Well, that's not exactly what happened: Dread was;––'; but Summit interrupted: 'What's happening to you, Josh? I thought politicians were never at a loss for words!'.  
Said Joshua: 'Not for words of Gratitude!', and everyone laughed; even Summit and Joshua. Said Joshua at last: 'Thank you, Dragon Flyz; from all of us!'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It goes to show, even when things are at their worst, one can always overthrow the forces of evil.


	20. Children's Crusade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the next generation of Dragon Flyz get into some trouble of their own…

We next join our heroes on the runway of Airlandis. All the damage had been repaired; the people's fear had quieted; and the Dragon Flyz were on their way to collect more crystals. As they left, a Zoomerang distracted Skywatch, and a small dragon went secretly into the broadcast-chamber, where Aaron stood directing the Skywatch in their new assignment. Zenith's voice came over the Vox Box: 'Dragon Fly One to Skywatch: we're clear of the Wind Pit and approaching the target-site!'.   
Aaron answered: 'Affirmative, Zenith; stay on course! You have a clear path ahead of you, with no sign of trouble!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Roger that, Skywatch! Let's lick the fires and burn some wing, Skywatch!'. Meanwhile, at Skywatch, the small dragon entered the room unnoticed.  
On Old Earth, Riptor saw the crystals in the midst of the magma, and said 'There they are!' to Zenith, who answered: 'I see them, Riptor. Drag-dive formation, Flyz! Drop and shop! Let's get those crystals back to Orac!'.   
Summit answered: 'I live to make Orac happy', and the dragons descended. Each dragon caught a crystal, and Zenith telephoned: 'Dragon Fly One to Skywatch: we've made the snatch. There's no sign of Dread Wing or his minions'.   
Aaron answered: 'Excellent, Zenith! It's a nice change of pace, to have a peaceful Amber run for a change! I'll see you back on the flight deck in a few hours!'.   
Said Peak: 'This dragonator stuff is getting too easy, Zenith; I need Dread Wing's uglies blasting plasma at me to make life worth living!'; but Apex flinched, and Zenith asked: 'What's wrong, Apex; are you hurt?'.   
She answered: 'It was a cry for help, from a Wild Dragon!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Where is it?', and Apex answered: 'He's close; I'll try to reach him!', and did so. When she knew the direction, she indicated it to the team's own dragons, and Zenith said: 'All right, Flyz: we have a rescue-flight to get under way!', and the dragons turned their course thitherward. Said Aaron: 'Be careful, Zenith; this could be a trap. Stay sharp!', and Zenith answered: 'Razor-sharp, sir; but we can't ignore a call for help'. Said Peak: 'Now, this is more like it!'.   
With the small dragon in Skywatch's tower, were two children; and one of them said: 'Hear that? The Dragon Flyz are going to rescue a Wild Dragon! They're the greatest!'. The other answered: 'I'll bet Apex found it; she's the greatest! Right, Clawfire?', and the dragon agreed. Said the first child: 'I'm going to be just like Zenith, when I grow up!', and his companion scoffed: 'You? A Dragon Fly? “Dragon Cry” is more like it!'.   
He answered: 'I'm not the cry-baby; you are!'.   
Said she: 'No, you are!'.   
Said he: 'No you are!'.   
Said she: 'No, you are!'.   
Said he: 'No you are!'.   
Said she: 'No, you are!'.   
Said he: 'No you are!'.   
Said she: 'No, you are!'.   
Said he: 'No you are!'.   
Said she: 'No, you are!'.   
Said he: 'No you are!'.   
Said she: 'No, you are!'.   
Said he: 'No you are!', and so forth for a while.   
On Old Earth, the Dragon Flyz found their client, in the form of a half-grown Wild Dragon tethered to the floor by an electrified chain. Said Apex: 'There he is!', and said Zenith: 'All right: surf up, everybody, and keep those Windjammers loose in their holsters! We may be flying into some bad news'. All the Dragons alighted, and Summit destroyed the chain's anchor with his Windjammer; whereupon the Wild Dragon flew free.   
Said Peak: 'Watch out! Dark Dramen attack!'; and a dozen Dark Dramen shot plasma-blasts from the walls of the surrounding ravines. With the enemy on all sides but one, Zenith said: 'Retreat, Dragon Flyz! Work wing out of here, now!', and the Dragon Flyz fought their way to freedom. Dread Wing on Blackheart, Nocturna on Nightmare, and Fryte on Skunk rose to pursue them, with new blasters in hand, which launched orbs of compressed powder, instead of the customary plasma. Peak only scoffed: 'Is that all you come up with, Dread? Fairy-dust?'; but Dread answered: 'Ashes to ashes, and dust to dust!', and shot the young Wild Dragon instead. Said Apex: 'I'm losing him! Dread's toxin is afflicting his brain!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Get out of there! Don't let that yellow-dust touch you!', and led the others, while Dread on Blackheart, Nocturna on Nightmare, and Fryte on Skunk rose after them.   
Said Zenith: 'Come on, Apex; come back for him later! Zenith to Skywatch: we're under heavy fire!'.   
Aaron answered: 'Do you wish for re-enforcements?'; but Zenith called: 'Don't deploy! Repeat: don't deploy! We can't risk any more dragonators against Dread's toxin!'.   
The young dragon in Skywatch roared, and Aaron saw him at last and scolded the children: 'Lucy! Tommy! What are you doing here?! You know you're not allowed into Skywatch!'.   
Tommy and Lucy answered: 'But Aaron: Blazewind is Clawfire's father! We have to know what happens to the Dragon Flyz!'.   
At that moment, the Dragon Flyz were in the midst of “a valiant rearguard action” against plasma-blasts and shots of toxin. Peak called: 'Apex: watch out!', as Nocturna filled Blazewind's path with a cloud of the toxin, which the dragon and his rider shook off in the Wind Pits. Her brothers joined her there on their dragons, and she answered: 'I'm fine! Dread's devil-dust missed us, but not for long! Let's get out of here!'.   
Zenith telephoned: 'Zenith to Skywatch! We're coming in hot! Apex needs a medical unit, on the flight-deck! She may be hurt worse than we know!'.   
Said Aaron: 'A medical team will be waiting when you touch down. Lucy? Tommy? Where did those two go now?'.  
They had gone, in fact, to the flight-deck, where they took helms and food-supplies from the stores, mounted Clawfire bare-backed, and launched him in spite of Skywatch, which had just announced 'that there would be no authorized launches until further notice'.   
Never having flown any great distance before, Clawfire simply fell from the runway, until Lucy told him: 'Flap your wings! Fly, Clawfire; fly!', and he caught himself as they fell. Once sure of himself, he turned their course to the Wind Pits.   
In another Pit, the Dragon Flyz still fled, while Apex's condition grew worse. As she said: 'I've caught some kind of fever; I'm beginning to hear things!'.   
Difficult though it always was to travel the Wind Pits, Clawfire emerged at last on Old Earth, with Lucy and Tommy still on his back. Exhausted by his flight, he finally came to a belly-landing on the edge of a cliff. Said Tommy: 'What'll we do now, Lucy?', who answered: 'What we came to do: help the Dragon Flyz!'.   
Fryte answered: 'You are the ones who need help, Little Bugs!'; but a wave of the yellow-dust splashed upon him, and he fell stunned.   
From Blackheart's back descended Dread Wing, and Fryte said: 'You have killed me!', but Dread Wing answered: 'Don't be so dramatic, Fryte; here's the antidote. I didn't mean to expose you; but you were about to make a terrible mistake, and I could not permit that'.   
Fryte drank the antidote and asked: 'Why don't you throw them in the lava and have done with it?!', but Dread Wing answered: 'Fryte, you must not rush simple pleasures; for then we would not have the Dragon Flyz do everything in their power to get them back!', and laughed.   
On Airlandis, Zenith on Riptor, Peak on Wing-Storm, and Summit on Sky-Fury landed easily; but Apex fell into a swoon on Blazewind's back, and they came to a very rough landing against some safety-nets, which Skywatch had brought to catch them. Apex herself was thrown to the floor. Her brothers and half the Skywatch and medical teams converged upon her; the other half on Blazewind. Apex struggled against her surgeons; then fell motionless again. Said Aaron: 'Fight it, Apex! (If anything happens to my daughter, Dread Wing, I shall hunt you to the Ends of the Earth!)'.  
Below the Warp Winds, Lucy and Tommy were on a rock above a flow of lava, and Clawfire caged above them. Said Dread Wing, from a ledge over all: 'Everyone to the pool! The lava's fine!'.   
Said Lucy: 'You won't hold us for long, Dread Wing; the Dragon Flyz will save us!'.   
Said Dread Wind: 'That's exactly what I'm counting on! The tide will turn, and so will the Dragon Flyz, when my mutagen turns them into monsters!'.   
Said Tommy: 'Just like you', and Lucy repeated it: 'Yeah! Just like you!'.   
Dread Wing answered: 'Yes; just like me. Now you just wait there; and when the Dragon Flyz arrive, we'll all be monsters, just like me!', and left them.   
On Airlandis, Nocturna arrived on Nightmare, and the Dragon Flyz readied their Windjammers. Said she: 'Hold your fire! I bring word from Dread Wing'.   
Said Peak: 'There's nothing you have to say that we have to hear!', but Nocturna answered: 'Yes you do: we've captured two small human children from Airlandis'.   
Said Aaron: 'The children! Not Lucy and Tommy? If Dread harms them, I'll;––';   
Nocturna interrupted him: 'What will you do, broken man?', and Peak said: 'I'll show you what we'll do!', but Zenith said: 'No, Peak; Dread's holding all the cards. What does he want in exchange for them, Nocturna?', who answered: 'Dread will tell you himself. There's a cavern in the middle of that Wind Pit. He'll meet you there; you three alone!', and rode away. Summit asked: 'Does he expect us to just show up?!'.   
Aaron answered: 'We have no choice, Summit: we must rescue the children and bring back some of the mutagen; it may be Apex's only hope, to survive!'.   
On Old Earth, Tommy had an idea. Said he: 'Hey Lucy: I think I know of a Way Out! I saw it in an old holo-film'.   
Lucy asked: 'Saw what?', and Tommy answered: 'Surfing!'. With that, he hopped down the outcrop on which they still lay, and Lucy said: 'Stay, Clawfire; we'll be back for you: I swear!', and followed. Tommy hopped upon a loose stone, which floated in the lava like wood upon water, and called: 'Come on, Lucy: jump!', which she did, and sat beside him. Dislodged by their leap, the stone floated onward; and the children were soon afloat along the lava-tube.  
Elsewhere, the Dragon Flyz descended to the Netherworld, and rode low over the landscape, in search of them. Before long, they arrived at the rendezvous, where they dismounted their dragons and flew on their exo-wings into the Wind Pit. There, Peak saw Dread Wing first, alighted on a rib of the Wind Pit, with Nocturna and Fryte beside him, and a squadron of Dark Dramen behind them all. Said Dread: 'Welcome, Dragon Flyz; it's always a pleasure to see you!'.   
Said Zenith: 'It won't be a pleasure if you don't give us the children!', and Dread answered: 'Who gave you that idea? Nocturna! Naughty of you! You didn't tell our guests here they'd be helpless, and alone'.   
Said Zenith: 'We're not alone', and pointed out a whole army of dragonators, posed along the walls of the Wind Pit.   
Said Nocturna: 'I said: “only you three!”', and Peak answered: 'I guess we can't count; just as you can't tell the truth!', and fired his Windjammer on them, but missed. Dread retaliated with shots of his mutagen, but missed. Windjammer shots and plasma-blasts filled the air, and mutagenic shots went wild, and hit some Dramen by mistake (for Dread could not turn quickly enough to take aim at the Dragon Flyz); so Dread called on Fryte: 'Get the children! We'll use them as human shields, against the Dragon Flyz!'. Fryte took to the air; but Peak shot down two Dark Dramen, and pursued him.   
On the prison-island, Fryte found Clawfire in the cage, but no children, and flew after them. When Clawfire saw him go, he shook the cage, until the bottom dropped out of it, and flew after Fryte.   
On their stone raft, the children were far ahead of all parties. Said Lucy: 'What'll we do now?', and Tommy answered: 'We get to the side, so we can jump off!'.   
Said Lucy: 'No way; we'll never make it!', and Tommy answered: 'All right; take it easy! I'm thinking!'.   
Said Lucy: 'Well: think faster!'; for before them, the lava fell down the face of a cliff. To fall with it would surely mean death.   
In the Wind Pit, Windjammer shots and plasma-blasts filled the air, and some dragonators were struck by mutagen. Dread Wing laughed, and shot again, but missed. Zenith gave the victim to another dragonator and said: 'Get that man out of here! Back to Airlandis!', which the other did.   
Quoth Summit: 'We can't afford to lose any more men, Zenith; we've got to pull out!'; but Zenith answered: 'Not without the children!', and he and his brothers flew to the children's rescue, and left the other dragonators to keep Dread Wing at bay.   
The lava-flow grew steeper, and Tommy said: 'Get ready, Lucy'. She asked: 'Ready for what?', and he answered: 'Ready to jump!', and the two leapt onto a bar of stone, undissolved by the lava, while their stone raft went over the edge into the valley below. Fryte came upon them, and seized Tommy; and when Lucy cried out, swept upon her, but missed. Tommy snatched the antidote from the mutant's girdle; Fryte answered: 'If you struggle, I drop you! Fryte never liked stoopid children!'; but to Tommy's rescue, came Clawfire, and struck Fryte full in the chest, who dropped Tommy on the solid ground and fell himself into the lava. With his “heat-resistant lava-proof” skin (the result of many ancestors accustomed to the Netherworld), Fryte was not killed; but he was carried away, and could not recapture his former prisoners. Moments later, Clawfire flew back to Airlandis, with Lucy and Tommy on his back, and Summit saw them go. Said he: 'Zenith: look! The kids! They're safe!', and Zenith answered: 'Then follow them out!', and led the dragonators to safety. The Dark Dramen fired their plasma-blasters on them, but missed; and the children on Clawfire led the way home.   
On Airlandis, the antidote was given to Apex, and to all the dragonators poisoned by Dread's new mutagen. When all were cured, Apex asked: 'So: who do I thank this time? And what's it going to cost?'.  
Aaron answered: 'Whatever it costs, it will cost double!', and pointed out the children, who stood at the window of the infirmary; then went out himself and bade them: 'You two: front and center! Do you want to be dragonators? Well: a dragonator follows orders! And the first order of business is: you must promise never to leave Airlandis like that again!'.   
Said Lucy and Tommy: 'We promise' (and indeed: it was not their fault, when they were caught in trouble again).   
Said Aaron: 'That goes for you too, Clawfire!', who groaned.   
Said Lucy: 'But we saved Apex with the antidote, didn't we?', and Tommy added: 'Yeah! We're practically dragonators already! We can do anything the Dragon Flyz can do!'.   
Said Peak to Aaron: 'And you thought I was trouble? It looks like the worst is yet to come!', and everyone laughed (even Clawfire).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I never liked the plot-device of floating on the rock, in the lava-flow; but until anyone has a better idea, I'll have to keep it. Meanwhile, I've always imagined, Lucy gets Clawfire, when they've grown up, and Tommy gets Fury's cub; what do my fellow-fans think?


	21. The Tri-Dragons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a potential "New Homeplace" is found to be occupied, by a rather interesting new species…

It was ten weeks later, when Dram and Aemod returned from a patrol on their dragons, our next story begins. They had just landed and dismounted on the runway, when another dragonator asked them: 'Have you seen Aaron? I tried raising him on his Vox Box, but there's no answer!'.   
Said Aemod: 'He's in the rainforest, in Bio-Sphere Three!', and the questioner said: '“Bio-Sphere Three”? –Thanks!', and rushed thither.   
In Bio-Sphere Three, Aaron was smelling a flower when his seeker appeared before him and said: 'Excuse me, Sir; but I have a priority-one dispatch from your son Zenith!'.   
Said Aaron: 'A dispatch? Have the Dragon Flyz found something interesting on their Scouting Mission?'.  
The dragonator answered: 'All Zenith said was: “Tell my father: 'Be careful of what you wish for, because sometimes you just might get it'”!'.   
Said Aaron: 'It must be an attack! Sound the alarm: D-2 Status! Battle-ready! All dragonators on stand-by alert!', and the dragonator obeyed.   
When Team One landed, Aaron asked: 'Zenith: what's going on? Should we launch all the dragonators?', and Zenith answered: 'Yes: every single one of them, and every Airlandian too! First, we're going to need some equipment, and a power-generator'.   
Said Aaron: '“A generator”? What for?', and Zenith answered: 'Because we're going to need power, and lots of it, to survive where we're going'.   
Said Aaron: 'I don't understand!', and Peak said: 'We've found it, Father!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Found what?', and Zenith answered: 'The home-place we've been looking for: as big and beautiful as anything you've ever dreamed of finding!'. All Airlandis cheered.   
On Old Earth, Dread Wing on Blackheart returned to Warnado. In Warnado itself, in his evil laboratory, Gangrene watched something on a screen, and beat furiously at it. Said Dread Wing: 'What is so important that I should be disturbed?', and Gangrene answered: 'It's strange signals on my screen! It's as if it's malfunctioning, or;–– or;––'.   
Dread Wing asked: 'Or what?!', and Gangrene answered: 'Or the entire population of Airlandis is on its way to Old Earth!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'You're trying my patience, Gangrene', and grabbed his scientist by the throat, who answered: 'I'm dreadfully sorry, Dread Wing, but I don't understand what's going on!'. Dread Wing threw Gangrene onto the table and ordered his Dramen: 'Now get out of here and find out what's going on!', and the Dramen took to the sky to do so.   
Elsewhere, the Dragon Flyz flew as the escorts of a convoy of strato-gliders, which bore all the Airlandians to their newly-found Oasis. Said Zenith: 'Tell me, Father: is it all you ever dreamed?', and Aaron answered: 'That, and more; it's perfect!'.   
Said Zenith: 'I wanted you to see it first-hand, before the colonists settled. You deserved it: you've looked for so long, and you never gave up hope'.   
Said Aaron: 'Never! I knew it was Out Here; because it was, always, in my heart'.   
Said Zenith: 'This is Dragon Fly One to All Dragonators: reconvene at Sector 17-9-0, and prepare to unload the Housing Units'; and with roars, the dragons turned in that direction.   
The Oasis on which they now landed, was neither as big, nor as high as Mount Alayas; but it had no toxic flowers, and the air was crisp and clean. There were still lakes, trees, and even green grass there; and rivers of pure water gathered every morn at the misty top, pooled at the lakes, and flowed into great waterfalls at the lowest precipices. All around the landing-sites, were towering walls of mountain-side, crossed neither by the evil mutants or the noxious fumes in which they lived. Aaron and the dragonators alighted first, and Aaron called: 'Careful! Careful! This is highly specialized technology!'. With that, the dragonators lowered the first Amber Reactor, and set it into place on the floor. Aaron activated it, and all the engineers cheered. The strato-gliders landed, and dispensed the colonists; and something watched them, among the trees.   
On one bluff, the dragonators unloaded their dragons of more reactors, and the engineers activated each in turn. On another, the housing-units were stationed. More strato-gliders landed, and dispensed the children, who ran and played in the long grass. The engineers tied five housing-units to each reactor, and Aaron activated them all. At once, the housing-units expanded to full-size, and all the colonists cheered. Said Zenith: 'Like a dream-come-true; isn't it, Father?', and Aaron answered: 'Yes, it is'; but Sky-Fury growled suspiciously at something among the trees, and roared a warning.   
Said Apex: 'Something's wrong', and the ground shook. Every dragonator raised its Windjammer, and the colonists trembled.   
Said Peak: 'What was that?!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Apex, do the dragons have a read on what that was?'.  
Apex answered: 'No; they can sense it, and even smell it, but they don't know what it is!'. The dragons roared more warnings; and something enormous burst from the trees. Said Zenith: 'Here it comes! Windjammers to max.; get ready!', and fired into the woodland. The other Dragon Flyz followed suit, and Aaron herded the colonists into their new houses. Something immense, but almost invisible seized six children, and the Dragon Flyz, with their usual call, took to the air on their exo-wings, to pursue it. All that remained of the kidnapper were a few clawed foot-prints, large enough to hold a nest for young dragons, and a great swath of broken trees, three grown dragons wide. To the foot-print came the dragonators, and Zenith said: 'Come on, Flyz, we've got to find them!', and the Dragon Flyz took to the sky on their dragons. To the children's parents, Aaron said: 'Don't worry: the Dragon Flyz will get them back'. To the other dragonators, he added: 'Prepare your Dragons! We're taking the settlers back to Airlandis, until we secure the area! Keep only a minimal guard stationed on the perimeter of the camp!', and this was soon done.  
In a hollow mountain nearby, on a long sharp out-crop of stone, Tommy addressed the other children: 'Anyone know what happened? All I remember were two huge jaws;–– and then I was in the air!'. The others said: 'Me, too!'. One asked: 'What'll we do now?', and Lucy answered: 'What any dragonator would do: we escape!', and she and Tommy led the way. The floor of the cavern was mossy, and the children found that they could walk quite easily. The exit, indeed, was in plain sight, when their kidnapper's great red eyes shone before them, and a warning growl filled the air. Said Tommy: 'Turn right! Run away!', and all the children fled; but three more pairs appeared of red eyes and warning growls, and they were surrounded.  
Outside, Dread Wing on Blackheart and Nocturna on Nightmare descended upon the camp, with a squadron of Dark Dramen on their own dragons. Said Dread Wing: 'So Gangrene was right! This is what the humans left home for: a new home!'.   
Said Nocturna: 'There! It appears to be a settlement. They've got dragonators posted around the compound'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Dragonators, but no Dragon Flyz. How convenient for us! Attack!', and the Dramen showered plasma-blasts on the camp. The dragonators retaliated with their Windjammers. One dragonator was knocked from the saddle, when a Dramen's dragon struck his own; but he recovered himself on his exo-wings, and telephoned: 'There's too many of them! Retreat! Vox back for re-enforcements!', and the others obeyed. Word soon reached Team One: 'M'aidez, Dragon Flyz: Dread Wing is attacking the camp! We are forced to retreat!', and the Dragon Flyz turned their course camp-ward.   
Said Apex: 'You go; I'll search for the children alone. Maybe I can communicate with whatever-that-was, and find out what it wants'.   
Said Zenith: 'Apex: do nothing foolish. Keep the needle in the black', and Apex on Blazewind resumed the search for the children, while the others returned to their comrades.  
At the camp, Dread Wing dismounted from Blackheart and said: 'Well, well, well: it looks like our Uninvited Guests intended to move in permanently! O, let's invite them to stay: I insist!', and he and all the Dramen fired a salute with their plasma-blasters.  
Said Nocturna: 'Over here, Dread Wing; hurry!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'O: an Amber-Crystal Power Generator! This is getting better and better. Dark Dramen! Over here, and stand this machine upright', which they did. Said he: 'This is a marvel. I wonder: how does it work?'. A Dramen set a crystal into the reactor, and it came alive.   
In the cavern, the children were still surrounded by red eyes and warning growls, and frightened of them; but all of a sudden, the two three-headed dragons (for such indeed they were) became visible, and flew from the cavern. Said Lucy: 'They're gone!', and the children followed them outward.   
At the camp, Blackheart growled, and the ground shook. Said Dread Wing: 'What, in Warnado's name, is this?!'. Something immense, but almost invisible moved among the trees, and he added: 'There it is! Fire!', and fired a plasma-blast himself; but the dragon only became visible, raised its three heads, and roared. Said Dread Wing: 'Stand your ground, Dramen! Keep that beast from the generator, Blackheart!'. Nocturna and Fryte shot plasma-blasts at the tricephalic, and so too did the Dramen; Blackheart flew away with the generator; and the new dragon followed him. Said Dread Wing on Blackheart: 'It's the generator it wants! This beast could become an unexpected ally against the humans. To Airlandis, Blackheart!', and to Airlandis they went. Zenith saw them go, and telephoned: 'Skywatch alert! Raise the defense-shields; Dread's luring the creature that attacked the camp, above the Warp Winds!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Any idea of how Dread Wing is controlling it?', and Zenith answered: 'It's our Amber Generator: that's what's making it attack!'.   
Said Aaron: 'My God! And now Dread is luring it to the largest of all Amber Generators, on Airlandis!'.   
Dread Wing on Blackheart led the hydroid through the Wind Pits to the blue sky above, while Nocturna and Fryte on their dragons shot plasma-blasts at it, to arouse it further. Once above the Wind Pits, the rightmost of the three heads seized the reactor in its mouth, and dropped it into the Warp Winds; but all three noticed Airlandis, and flew for it. With a mighty roar, it drove itself into the Crystal Reactors that empowered the city, and Airlandis shook. All the people ran helter-skelter, or slipped and fell. Orac struck an emergency switch, and the Reactors withdrew into the Dome, and shut the attacker without.   
In the Oasis, the children came face-to-shell with some eggs as large as themselves. From the nearest egg hatched a three-headed dragon: four times as large as any Airlandian hatchling, but perfectly formed and quite able to walk (though not yet to fly). Lucy fed it some fruit, and its skin changed its colour to that of the fruit, which made the children laugh.   
Above the Warp Winds, the dragonators rode their dragons in circles, arcs, and graceful curves around the attacker's three heads, which snapped at them and missed. Said Zenith: 'There it is! Windjammers: full jamming-power! We've got to hold it back!', and the Dragon Flyz fought.  
In the Oasis, Apex heard the children laugh, and found them gathered about their new playfellow, to whom they periodically tossed a fruit, while Lucy sat on its back. Blazewind alighted, and the hatchling threw Lucy and fled into the forest.   
Apex dismounted, and Lucy said: 'Whoa-ow! O: hi, Apex; you're probably looking for us'.   
Apex answered: 'Good guess, Lucy. Didn't I see you standing on something a minute ago?!', and Lucy said: 'Yeah! It's one of the Tri-Dragons who inhabit this mountain!'.   
Tommy added: 'Yeah! They live in the cave!'.   
Said Apex: 'What cave? Show me!', and the children did this.   
Above the Warp Winds, the Dragon Flyz attacked the grown Tri-Dragon (as we too now must call it), which only roared and struck at them. Said Zenith: 'Follow me! It's got to have a weak-spot!'. All the dragonators rode their dragons in circles, arcs, and graceful curves around the attacker's three heads; but it called for its own re-enforcements, and three more Tri-Dragons appeared above the clouds. Said Peak: 'Watch out!'.   
A voice came over the Vox Box: 'Apex to Zenith: can you hear me?’.  
Zenith answered: 'Loud and clear. Did you find the kids?'.   
Said she: 'The kids and more! The Tri-Dragons are attacking us in answer to the vibrations of our Amber Reactors!'.   
Said Zenith: 'That's “old news”, Sis', and Riptor, with a roar, led the other dragons in a new course. Said Apex: 'Then here's a news-flash: the vibrations are prematurely cracking the Tri-Dragons' eggs. Their young are in danger; and now, so are ours. They stole the children as a warning. We don't have a choice, Zenith: we'll have to run our generators at half-strength, until I get a handle on the situation'.   
Said Zenith: 'Roger that, Apex. It won't make Orac happy; but you're calling the shots on this one', and rode Riptor to the reactors. The foremost Tri-Dragon tried to follow; but the bay-doors shut upon it. Said Orac, when he heard of the plan: 'Lower our generators to half-strength?! Are you insane?! Have you any idea of what you're asking?!'.   
Said Zenith: 'I do; but we have no other options'.   
Said Orac: 'I can't sustain our altitude on half-power!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Can't you just lower the city to the level of the Warp Winds?'.   
Said Orac: 'Give them the go-ahead. I just hope we can survive'. With that, he lowered the generators to half-power, and the city sank.  
At the Oasis, the children laid nests of branches and leaves around the unhatched eggs, and Apex commended them: 'Good job, Guys; these eggs should be safe-and-sound, now'.   
A voice came over the Vox Box: 'Zenith to Apex: Airlandis is at half-power, but not for long; so get to work, and fast! We don't have a lot of time!'.   
Apex answered: 'Trust me, Zenith; this will work. Come on, Guys! Try to hold the baby in your hands!', and held a fruit before the hatchling Tri-Dragon, while the children held it still. When none of the heads could reach the fruit, the hatchling moaned, and Apex transmitted its moans to Skywatch, who broadcast them on their loudspeakers. When the grown Tri-Dragons heard this, they hurried back to the Oasis, and left Airlandis unharmed; and Apex left the fruit to the hatchling, and led the children into a thicket outside the hatchery. The grown Tri-Dragon comforted the hatchling, and Apex and the children watched them. Said she: 'Now, let's get out of here while we still can! Apex to Zenith: mission accomplished! Send the rescue-team to pick us up at the original check-point'.   
He answered: 'Roger that, Apex; we're on our way!'. The hatchling told the whole story to its parents; then watched Apex and the children as the rescue-team fetched them.   
Some time later, the other eggs hatched at the right time, and the hatchlings fed on fruit, while the colonists dismantled their settlement and returned to Airlandis; but Team One took the children on their saddles to watch the hatchlings play, one last time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a favourite episode of mine. Any opinions?


	22. The Accused

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the story is retold from the bad guys' point of view…

When we next join our heroes, Zenith was, as the saying goes, in dire straits; for he had gone in search of Joshua on Old Earth, and Dread Wing's forces had captured him instead. Now he knelt at prisoner before Dread Wing's throne, and Gangrene announced: 'Hear ye! Hear ye! The Court of No Appeals will come to Order! Justice Dread Wing presiding!', who laughed and said: 'The Trial of the Millennium is now open! Zenith: you stand accused of Treason against Human and Mutant Kinds! How do you plead?'.   
Zenith answered: '“Plead”?! You'll plead before this is over!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'I'll take that, as a “not guilty” plea. For the Prosecution: I appoint Gangrene!'.   
Said Zenith: 'This is a farce: you don't have any right over me!’.  
Dread Wing said: 'The accused will only speak when spoken to! Or be silenced permanently'.   
Said Nocturna: 'With your permission, Dread Wing: I will lead the Defense and represent the accused'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'A Defense! I hadn't planned on that. Never let it be said, unlike the humans' treatment of us, this was a Fair and Just Trial! Now: if you are ready to begin, Mr. Prosecutor; proceed!’.  
Said Gangrene: 'Thank you, Your Horror. The Mutants intend to prove, With Utter and Unrelenting Malice, the humans have done Everything They Could to destroy Warnado, and its occupants!   
Without thought for the consequences, they attacked Warnado, as soon as I (your Resourceful Prosecutor) succeeded in making the engines operative again. As you said to me on that occasion: “It's alive! The Warnado lives again! Give it Full Power! Rise, Warnado! Rise!”; and rise it did, even past the Warp Winds! At once, the Dragon Flyz attacked Warnado on their dragons. Warnado put up a valiant effort to defend itself; but the treacherous Dragon Flyz infiltrated our defences, and inflicted damage on the great machinery of Warnado! –Which fell, unfortunately, back into the pit from which it arose, and left the surrounding land less hospitable than ever before! An unprovoked attack, from which the Mutants claim full compensation!'.   
Said Zenith: 'That's a lie! You were trying to destroy Airlandis!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Objection overruled! (by your over-ruler)'.   
Said Gangrene: 'Objection! We were not attacking; we were trying to help! Your engines had failed; it was certain destruction! Our ship was your only chance of Salvation!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Lies, Gangrene; it's all lies!', but Dread Wing only laughed.   
On Airlandis, Aaron addressed his children: 'First Joshua; now your brother! Dread Wing is behind this, for sure!'.   
Peak answered: 'As sure as I'm going to find Zenith; and pity the poor mutant who tries to stop me!'. Summit added: 'Or me!', and Apex added: 'Or me!', and all three departed for Warnado on their dragons.   
On Warnado, Dread Wing said: 'Gangrene! Continue your charges against the accused’.  
Gangrene said: 'There aren't enough talons in this room, to count the times the humans have fought to colonize territory, already belonging to us mutants! On one occasion (to name only that one), they set their eyes on an Oasis, located deep in the heart of a mountain, that you had reserved for yourself, and meant to bequeath to Nocturna (presently the Defense Counsel). When you offered a peaceful resolution, the accused here had the daring to challenge you to a Duel, which he won only by treachery! Will you, prisoner, stand here, before this Court, and deny the allegation that you challenged Dread Wing?'.   
Said Zenith: 'I did challenge him! But only to avoid a bloodbath'.   
Said Gangrene: '“Avoid”?! “Incite” is what you intended all along! Do you deny that, too?!'.   
Said Zenith: 'But that's not true; Nocturna ambushed us before the Duel was over!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Do you testify to that allegation, Nocturna?', who answered: 'If I recollect the events of that day: it was nothing like that. But I do remember now; I did force the humans to fight'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'Silence in the Court! You will not escape Mutant Justice by accusations of the Judge himself! From now on: you will only speak when spoken to!'.   
Zenith answered: '“Justice”?! You don't even know the meaning of the word!'. Fryte caught Zenith by the neck, and threatened to strangle him; but Nocturna kicked him off, and Dread Wing said nothing.   
Gangrene continued: 'The accused wants us to believe, All his motives are noble; but if his own superiors had their way, he would be in prison right now! The Prosecution calls the human Joshua!', and a Dark Dramen escorted him into the throne-room.   
Meanwhile: Summit, Peak, and Apex crept into Warnado by way of some tunnels, and found themselves in a great circular hall, into which opened half-a-dozen slanted shafts. From the floor burst a giant green caterpillar, as large as Blackheart and even longer. Quoth Summit: 'It's a Terror-Worm!', and they fled before it.   
In the throne-room, Gangrene said to Joshua: 'I ask you again: did you not say, Human, in your confession: the accused refuses to follow your orders?!'.   
Said Joshua: 'Please, give me some water! I haven't had to drink for three days!'; but Fryte answered: 'You drink, Human, when you answer questions, and answer right way'.   
Said Joshua: 'The Dragon Flyz never follow orders! First, they tried to bribe Dread Wing's most trusted lieutenant, Nocturna, with an offer of the rule of Warnado and Old Earth, in exchange for an unlimited supply of Amber Crystals! The attempt only failed, when the Dragon Flyz lost the courage to complete it'.   
Said Gangrene: 'I demand Nocturna be removed from this case!’.  
Dread Wing answered: 'I know all this, Gangrene! Carry on!’.  
Gangrene gave the same order to Joshua, who said: 'After this, Aaron and his sons came up with a plan to destroy Dread Wing. In an offer to terminate the war, Dread Wing arranged a peaceful meeting with myself and Aaron, upon the neutral ground atop the mount Alayas. There, Dragonator Dram attacked Dread Wing and his advisors, and Aaron synthesized a hallucinogen from the flowers of Mount Alayas, which he used to intoxicate and terrify Dread Wing and the others. Aaron wanted to use his latest invention, to destroy all the mutants, and told me so himself'.   
Said Zenith: 'Objection! My father would never do a thing like that. It was the plants that caused the hallucinations; they affected us, too! When I inhaled their fragrance, I saw a ditto of myself about to sabotage the housing-units; and his face, when I saw it, changed into the face of a monster! My brother Peak saw another monster, in the face of the woman he loved! We all suffered the same hallucinations as the mutants; my father's invention saved us all, mutant and human! It was Dread Wing who tried to kill Joshua and my father. The accused accuses you, Dread Wing, of Crimes against Human and Mutant Kinds! Was it not you, Dread Wing, who denied the validity of the arrangement you made yourself, just to keep me and my teammates your prisoners?!'.   
The Gremwings screeched, and Dread Wing said: 'Silence! Dragon Fly: you stand guilty as charged. The Court has heard enough!'.   
Peak answered: 'And so have we!'. Warnado quivered, and the Terror-Worm burst into the throne-room. Summit and Peak started for Zenith; Joshua knocked down Fryte and Gangrene; Summit forced Dread Wing from his throne with Windjammer shots; and Apex took Joshua to the air with her exo-wings. Said Dread Wing: 'Don't let them escape!'; but escape they did.   
Nocturna challenged them outside Warnado, and Zenith asked: 'What side are you on, Nocturna?'.   
She answered: 'Yours, for to-day; but you'd better hurry, before I change my mind', and they left her there. Said she: 'You're not bad-looking, for a Human!', and the Dragon Flyz and Joshua returned to Airlandis.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any opinions?
> 
> Some fans have capitalized on Nocturna's remark; but I don't.


	23. The F.I.S.T. Fighters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which our heroes discover some more survivors of the Cataclysm, and Peak makes more of a fool of himself than usual…

Airlandis soon ran its crystal-cycle once more, and Team Three returned to Old Earth in search of fresh crystals. Said Dragonator Nine: 'Let's wrap it up, Team Three; it looks like we can write off this sector! Dragonator Nora to Skywatch: Team Three requests permission to return to Airlandis'. A little further, the dragons bellowed, and Nora said: 'Hold on, Skywatch! I may have spoken too soon! We have a lock on an Amber stash in this Sector! We'll scope it out and report back; over'.   
Skywatch answered: 'Negative, D.F. 3! You have enemies on your perimeter, and closing in, at 200 meters! 150 meters! 100 meters! Prepare for battle! I repeat: prepare for battle!'.   
Sure enough: Nocturna on Nightmare and Fryte on Skunk rose into view, with a squadron of Dark Dramen on their dragons, and Fryte shot a dragonator from the saddle with his plasma-blaster. Nora, in return, shot a Dramen from the saddle with her Windjammer, and one of her teammates did so to another Dramen. A third Dramen shot another dragonator from the saddle, as before; but he recovered himself on his exo-wings. Fryte's second shot missed; but the dragon threw its rider, and he too recovered himself in the same way. Nora and her last teammate fled on their dragons, with Fryte on Skunk and half the Dramen after them.   
On Airlandis, Skywatch broadcast the message: 'All available units: this is a D-1 Alert! Dragonators under attack in Sector G-6! Two men down! Nora pressed!'.   
Said Peak on Wing-Storm: 'Did you hear that, Flyz? G-6 is just a couple of kilometers from here!', and Zenith on Riptor added: 'And a couple of minutes! There's no time to lose!', and Wing-Storm led the Dragon Flyz to that Sector.  
In Sector G-6, Nora and her teammate put their dragons' backs to a mountain, where Fryte soon confronted them. Nora shot a Dramen from the saddle with her Windjammer, and Fryte showered plasma-blasts on her comrade. Quoth he: 'You've met your match, Human! Surrender, and Fryte promise to make your end swift!'. Nora answered: 'In your dreams, Fryte!', just as Team One joined the battle. Zenith shot one Dramen from the saddle; Apex another; and Summit a third. When Nora took her sight from him, Fryte shattered her helm with a plasma-blast; but he and Nocturna retreated, with their last two Dramen behind them (all on their dragons), and the dragonators returned to Airlandis.   
Once there, in Skywatch's tower, Aaron addressed his children, and Nora: 'Before their Vox-Box transmissions broke off, D.F. 3 said their dragons had located a large Amber deposit on Old Earth. With our Amber supply at a nadir, Airlandis has drifted too far from Sector G-6, to confirm her readings. Whatever is there: we need it, now, or never'.   
Said Peak: 'Father: Nora should come with us. Her team have already scouted the area: they know it, and we don't! She could save us the time we don't have'.   
Said Aaron: 'Nora: are you recovered from this morning's battle?'.   
Nora answered: 'A minor altercation, Sir. I'm surfed up and ready to burn some wing!'.   
Said Aaron: 'Then this is your chance to fly as a full-fledged Dragon Fly! Good luck!'.   
Said she: 'You can count on me, Sir; I won't let you down!', and left him, with Peak soon behind her. Said Aaron: 'Don't worry about me; just don't let Airlandis down!'.   
In the corridor, Peak said: 'Chill the gratitude, Nora! Wasn't this the break you were looking for? The chance to team up with the Dragon Flyz?'; but she answered: 'It's a routine mission, Peak; I've flown a thousand of them!', and joined the others in the next lift. Said Peak, behind her: 'Women! I can't fly with them, and can't fly without them!'.   
On Warnado, Dread Wing scolded Nocturna, Fryte, and their Dramen: 'Never more! Never more, shall you fail me! Never more, shall the Dragon Flyz escape my wrath!'. With that, he took up Fryte and shook him; threw him down, and said: 'Never more, Fryte!', and flew through Warnado on his own wings. Said he: 'Rise, my Gremwings; rise! Go, my Insects of Destruction! Fill the Skies, and bring Terror to the humans, wherever they may hide'. With that, he alighted above the Mouth of Warnado, and added: 'Teach them, my Gremwings; teach them Fear! The Shadow that follows them, will not be theirs, but yours', and the Gremwings flew screeching into the open.  
In Sector G-6, the Dragon Flyz were in search of Nora's crystals, and Peak wondered: 'What is she waiting for? An “applause” sign?'.   
Said Apex: 'If you want applause, Little Brother, you should come up with something new!', and Peak said: 'Not you, too, Apex. Stop eavesdropping on my Vox Box, and stop calling me “Little Brother”!'.   
The search led them to a thick forest, of the sort usually inhabited by the Good Dramen (though too close for humans, to the lava-pits and their noxious vapours), from which stood circular platforms of stone atop narrow columns. Riptor sounded a call, and Nora said: 'He seems to be detecting the Ambers again!'.   
Said Zenith: 'That's an affirmative. Spread out, Flyz; drop-and-shop!'; and spread they did, but did not see the Gremwings ambushed below. Said Peak: 'We'd better buddy-up, Nora, in case anything happens'.   
Said Nora: 'A Windjammer is the only buddy a Dragon Fly needs. I'm grown up, Peak; I can take care of myself'; but at that moment, the Gremwings surrounded her, and she was too slow to do as she said. Peak shot them in her stead, and he on Wing-Storm and Nora on her dragon retreated, with the horde behind. Peak telephoned Zenith: 'There's too many of them! I've never seen so many!'.   
Zenith answered: 'Peak: repeat that! So many of what?!'; but the answer filled the skies as soon as he spoke. The dragonators were surrounded, and fought for their lives. Peak was tipped from the saddle by three Gremwings, and fell into the forest. Another Gremwing sent Nora after him.   
When Peak woke, he sought about for Nora, but fell himself into a pit, and landed on a hard stone floor, where he swooned again. Said Nora: 'Peak! Wake up! Come on, Peak; no sleeping on the job! Are you O.K?'.   
Said Peak: 'My face hurts; can you kiss it and make it better?', and Nora answered: 'We'd better figure out where we are! It looks like some kind of cave'.   
The two dragonators lit their headlamps, and set out to explore. Something swept overhead, and Nora said: 'By-the-book, Peak; let's heat up our Windjammers'.   
Said Peak: 'Whoa, look at that!'; for in the next cave, above a stream of magma, atop a large body of machinery, was a mass of Amber as large as three dragons. Said Peak: 'It's made of pure Amber!', and Nora answered: 'So this is what the Dragons were picking up!', and the two dragonators approached the pedestal on which the mass sat. This pedestal was itself studded with Ambers, and Peak said: 'Just a single one of these crystals could power Airlandis for a whole week!', and tried to pull one loose. When none came loose, he shot a short length of them free of the pedestal with his Windjammer.   
Said Nora: 'Peak: I'm not sure you should be doing that'; he asked: 'And why not? This place was probably abandoned a thousand years ago!'; but from the rafters swept a dozen child-sized people on small exo-wings, and surrounded Peak and Nora.   
Said Peak: '“Children”? What are children doing here?!'. Said Nora: 'I don't know; but judging by the look on their faces: I don't think they're here to play!'.   
Above the forest, the Gremwings flew in circles, and one of them gave a report to Dread Wing, who said: 'What? What is it trying to say, Nocturna?', who answered: 'It says that two of the dragonators are trapped in the tunnels below!'.   
Said Dread Wing: 'O, how fortunate! They're waiting for me to offer the final, fatal stroke!', and Blackheart rose into the air to find them, with Nocturna on Nightmare and Fryte on Skunk close behind.   
Underground, the little people bound Nora and Peak, and shouted insults. Said Peak: 'Wait! We didn't know!'; and someone answered: 'Silence, heathen!': namely, a man only slightly larger than the others, but older than Peak himself. Said he: 'You mutants have invaded our land! You mutants have profaned our Temple! Now, you must pay!'.   
Said Peak: 'We're not mutants; we're Human, just like you’.  
The elder answered: 'Liar! Humans have always lived under the Earth. Only mutants can survive the Harsh Conditions, of the Surface World!'.   
This set his followers to renewed shouts and clamour; and the elder himself said: 'Look at you! You are nothing like us. We are warriors; we are the Fist Fighters!'.   
Peak asked: 'What do you mean: “Fist”?', and the elder answered: '“Fight, Infiltrate, Strike, and Terminate”! To Terminate all who are not like us'.   
Said Nora: 'But we are like you! Our ancestors escaped the Cataclysm and built a City in the Sky! A City powered by Amber! That's why we came here: our Dragons sensed the Amber in your Temple!'.   
The elder answered: 'More lies! You came here to steal it, and destroy the Earth all over again!'.   
Said Peak: 'Hey! We didn't destroy it the first time! We're looking to rebuild it; finding a way to make it live again!'.   
Said the elder: 'You'll make it live again; one life for another! It's time to face the judgement of the Amber, and give your lives to the Earth, that it may live again!', and his followers thrust the Dragon Flyz toward the magma.   
A short while later, Peak and Nora lay bound upon a disc suspended from a pulley, above the magma-pit, and Nora asked: 'What are you going to do with us?'.   
The elder answered: 'You are being lowered into the Sacred River, from which we draw the life-giving Amber'.   
Said Nora: '“Sacred River”? Do you mean the magma-river?', and the elder answered: 'Yes! You will become one with the River of Life, and be reborn in the Amber! (I envy you)'. Both Dragon Flyz struggled; but the pulley lowered them none the less.  
Above the tunnels, Skunk, Nightmare, and Blackheart alighted on three great boulders, and Dread Wing dismounted Blackheart and said: 'If they're not dead already, they soon will be. Bring the plasma-grenades! We should give these Humans a “decent” burial'.   
When Dread Wing said 'decent', he meant 'indecent'; so Fryte dismounted Skunk and gave Dread Wing the plasma-grenades.   
On the pulley, both Dragon Flyz struggled, and Peak said: 'I can't get free!'.   
Said Nora: 'Try harder!', and Peak said: 'I'm doing my best!'; Nora answered: 'Your best, had better get better, or we're going to get a lot worse!'.   
Peak took Nora's hand, and she said: 'What, Peak? It was going to swell; but the swelling is down now!'; and the pulley lowered them still lower. When they were almost at the magma, Dread Wing's plasma-grenades exploded, and the ceiling of the cave dropped stones among the Fist Fighters, and stopped the pulley. The elder called: 'The gods have refused our sacrifice! It's an Omen: an Omen of Doom!'.   
Above the forest, Summit pointed out the explosion and called: 'What was that?!'. Zenith answered: 'I don't know: but my guess is: it starts with Dread Wing!', and he and Riptor led the others on their dragons to the site.   
Said Nocturna: 'It's the Dragon Flyz!', and Dread Wing answered: 'Two Dragonators; then the Dragon Flyz! O, this is a really glorious day!', and took to the sky on Blackheart, whilst half the Gremwings flew screeching behind him. The other half flew into the Fist Fighters' Temple, where their look-out called: 'Mutants in the Cavern! We are under attack!'.   
The elder answered: 'Fist Fighters: defend the Temple!', and the Fist Fighters took to the air on their exo-wings, and smote the Gremwings with their mattocks. A Gremwing snapped at Nora, but tore only her bonds; and when it returned to snap again, she knocked it into the magma, and freed Peak. Said he: 'Nice punch!', and she answered: 'Don't try to kiss-up to me, Peak! Now, let's see if we can get these Gremwings to try something else on their menu!', and both took to the air on their exo-wings and shot down the Gremwings with their Windjammers. Three Gremwings threw the elder toward the magma-river; and Nora rescued him. Said he: 'I thank you; but why did you save me, Mutant?'.   
She answered: 'Because I'm not a Mutant! I'm on your side: I hate these Gremwings as much as you do!'.   
Said Peak: 'The ceiling! Shoot at the stalactites!', which she did. Said the elder: 'Our sacrifice, was refused. The giants have shown us the answer! Shoot at the jagged rocks, and we shall destroy these Gremwings, together!', which his followers did. Whenever a stalactite fell, it struck a Gremwing.   
Above ground, Dread Wing and his minions shot plasma-blasts at the Dragon Flyz, who retaliated with their Windjammers. A Gremwing bit Zenith, and he shook it off. Nocturna landed Nightmare on the back of Sky-Fury, who dove for cover, with Nightmare in hot pursuit. Said Dread Wing: 'Ah! More of my Gremwings to join the battle. Let's feed these annoying dragonators to them, shall we?'; but as the fliers came nearer, he added: 'Wait! Those aren't my Gremwings. What are they?!', and Peak answered: 'They're called the Fist Fighters, Dread Wing, and they don't like you any better than I do! Get him, Guys!', and the Fist Fighters swept upon Dread Wing and his followers, and drove them into retreat. Everyone cheered.   
Once returned to the Fist Fighters' cavern, Zenith said: 'You saved my followers. We owe you a great debt'; but the elder answered: 'No; you owe us nothing, Good Man: you saved my people. We are equal, as it should be'.   
Peak gave him a spare Vox Box and said: 'Take this; any time you need help, call us, and we'll come from our City in the Sky'.   
Said the elder: 'How is it your City floats in the Sky? Your gods must be very powerful!'.   
Quoth Summit: 'Well, we have only one god; and his name is Orac: Master Technician, and his Amber generators'.   
Said the elder: 'The Sacred Amber! Now I understand! It is my turn to give you a gift, since you are followers of the Amber, as we are', and one of his own followers presented three crystals.   
Said Peak: 'Hey Nora: you know what they say about near-death circumstances', and offered his hand; but she answered: 'No; I don't', and Peak said: 'Boy! did you get up on the wrong side of the dragon this morning!'.   
Said Zenith: 'Peak may be one of the best dragonators for his age; but he still has a lot to learn about life!'. Apex added: 'And about women!', and everyone laughed. Zenith shook hands with the elder, and the Dragonators returned to Airlandis.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was the last episode aired on TV; afterward, the fan-fiction begins in earnest. 
> 
> In case anyone missed it: the F.I.S.T. Fighters are smaller than the dragonators, because their lifestyle kept them at the average height of a pre-Cataclysmic, or slightly shorter, while the Airlandians grew taller over time. The meaning of their name, suggests they were organized early after the Cataclysm, when the Mutants were still a novelty in the world.


	24. A to Z

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first true fan-written episode, in which the present author introduces the 'Matrix' cross-over…

On one of their explorations, the Dragon Flyz rode over a plain of bare rock, when Summit called: 'I'm picking up some movement, over there’.  
Said Zenith: 'What's it look like?'.  
Apex added: 'I see it, too!'.  
Said Peak: 'We all do. There it is!'.  
Zenith added: 'Hover down; find out whether they might be friendly. They don't look like mutants to me'. Riptor groaned.  
The locals were six men, four women, and four self-propelled machines. At the sight of the Dragon Flyz, they halted and raised their weapons; but the Flyz alighted, showed their hands in sign of peace, and approached the locals without a fight.  
Both sides asked: 'Who are you? Where do you come from? What are those with you? How did you escape the Cataclysm?'.  
Zenith said: 'We're from the city of Airlandis, which flies above the Warp Winds. Where have you been?'.  
Hemmridge, the local leader, answered: 'We're from the city of Zion, which lies underground'.  
Both sides laughed and asked: 'Why didn't our side think of that?!’.  
Said Peak: ‘Come on! We’ll show you Airlandis’, and the Zionites, human and machine alike, boarded the dragons’ backs and rode with our heroes to the city.  
On Airlandis, the human Zionites gazed in awe, and their Machine friends in curiosity, at the golden pavements; deep-green trees; gleaming towers; and luminous crystals.  
Said the Flyz: 'Beautiful, isn't it?'.  
One of the human Zionites said: 'Where we come from, everything is dark except for the Control Room, unless we visit the Matrix'.  
Asked Peak: 'What's the Matrix?'.  
The Zionites answered: 'It's a set of computers, about the size of a city, with a neural interface capable of immersing the human mind in a waking dream, to see what the world was like before the Cataclysm'.  
Said Zenith: 'In that case, you'd better see my father. He'll want to know all about it'; and at the end of the Zionites' tour of the city, he led them to his father immediately.  
In Warnado, Dread Wing heard of the Zionites from his Dramen. Said he: 'You saw the Dragon Flyz go off with new humans, and these Machines, and you did nothing about it?! Out of my sight! You're useless, all of you! Nocturna! Wake up the Gremwings, and take to the skies! We'll attack Airlandis, and destroy those worms who invaded us, without these idiots of mine knowing! Fryte, go find where those new humans came from, and bring me back their heads, or the heads of anyone with them!'.  
The intelligence Dramen fled; Nocturna rose; and Fryte, though he scarcely understood Dread Wing's orders, collected his people to follow them.  
On Airlandis, Aaron heard the Zionites' story, and said: 'It seems quite astonishing; but I can believe it. We of Airlandis welcome you, as long-lost brethren; and it seems you of Zion are in some need of protection. If our enemy Dread Wing becomes aware of you, he shall surely attack'.  
A Machine asked: 'Who is this Dread Wing?’.  
Aaron answered: 'I shall explain; but I first want to hear, How your peoples survived the Cataclysm?'.  
The other Machines re-arranged themselves into a viewscreen, and the Machine who had spoken, narrated the images thereon:  
'The ancestors of those humans with us, caused the Cataclysm, Aaron; for having created us, humanity became afraid of our strength and intelligence, and determined to destroy us before our population could exceed theirs. In the destruction that followed, all perished, except a few. As the Warp Winds closed over the world, Airlandis rose through the last opening between them (as you yourself have told us); while we Machines, to preserve ourselves, relied on nuclear fusion to survive. On the ground, our two societies fought a moderate feud for 600 years or more, but at last declared a truce and formed a Collective Commonwealth, beneficial to both. At present, our plan is based on the construction of immense towers, or artificial Wind Pits, and building cities on their pinnacles, above the Warp Winds. Your technology suggests your ability to assist this plan; and we Machines suspect, this Dread Wing may be an obstacle. Please explain him'.  
Aaron said: 'When the Warp Winds closed over the world, a new breed evolved, in the millennium that followed: creatures who would become Man's dreaded enemy. Dread Wing is the leader of these: a fearsome warlord, intent upon commandeering Airlandis and destroying our people. His own race are half man, and half dragon, and bear all the worst characteristics of both. If your peoples are underground, he did not find you; but now you have surfaced, I fear he shall seek you, and try to conquer you all'.  
Said Hemmridge: 'Then we must go back to Zion at once!'.  
Said Zenith: 'We'll go with you', and the two parties went.  
Elsewhere, Dread Wing received his spies’ report in his throne-room. Said he: ‘So, these new humans and their “machines” come from a city underground! We must do something about this. Attack at once! Mobilize all the strength of our mutant forces! The Dragon Flyz must not be allowed this new ally. Come with me, Nocturna; you shall watch, as I bury this new hope for Airlandis, in the subterrain from which they crawled!’.  
By the time our heroes reached the Zionites' entrance to the surface, Dread and his hordes were already there: Dramen had settled on the ground, with their plasma-blasters and dart-guns, while the skies were obscured by the hordes of screeching Gremwings. Immediately the Dragon Flyz blasted through the foul army with their Windjammers, while the Zionites did likewise with their lightning-generators.  
Said Dreadwing to his servants: 'Don't just float there! Destroy them!', and the Gremwings covered their enemies with buzzing wings and incessant screeches; but the Dragon Flyz and their Zionite friends fought harder, and the Zionites at the entrance (human and Machine alike) saw their friends among the newcomers and rejoined the battle. Noise was everywhere of fizzing Windjammers and frothing plasma-blasters; of spring-loaded darts and screeching Gremwings. Dragons roared and Dramen bellowed; the Machines whirred and clicked and screamed; lightning cracked; thunder boomed; and over all were Dread Wing's voice shouting insults at his minions, and the battle-cries of his enemies:  
'Dragon Flyz, maximize!';  
'Machines and Men;–– together! (And Dragons, too!)';  
'Dragon Flyz, cut and dive!';  
'Jamming power!';  
'Deus ex machina!';  
'Dragon Flyz, vaporize!'.  
Behind his army, Dread himself roared and bellowed from Blackheart's back, until Riptor flew past him, and Zenith struck him from his saddle. The mutant spread his own wings; but Zenith did likewise, and forced him to the ground with stunning-blasts of his Windjammer. Apex and Summit cornered Nocturna, and Peak struck Fryte senseless with a single punch. Above them struggled Riptor against Blackheart, and Riptor soon had the advantage. To escape, Blackheart spat fire into a deposit of explosive minerals, and the explosion showered everyone with dust and smog.  
When the air cleared again, Dread was gone, and Fryte and Nocturna with him, on their three dragons. Gremwings and Dark Dramen lay dead or senseless all over the battlefield. Of the living, the human Zionites were worst-wounded; for they had no armour, and came of a human stock older and weaker than that of the Dragon Flyz. To them, the heat and radio-activity was death, even when the Dragons, Dramen, and Airlandians survived with ease.  
The wounded Zionites, therefore, accompanied the dragonators to Airlandis for medication, and a few of them survived. Of the Machines, only one was destroyed, and two damaged, which quickly rebuilt themselves; for as one of them said: 'Each Machine is akin to every other. Two can become one, and one can become many. If one is crippled, others become parts of it, and feel none the worse as a result, for we have no “individual personalities”, such as you have; only a mind and memories. We are always what we are, and cannot become otherwise; therefore none is ever afraid to change its function. To do what we are meant to do, and do it well, is our joy and ambition; and we are not afraid to change what we do'.  
Said Peak: 'Good for you; but I can't imagine myself as anything but one of the Dragon Flyz'.  
Apex answered: 'That's “a good thing, too”'; at which her brothers all laughed, and the Zionites with them. Everyone cheered: 'Flight is Might!', and the Dragons bellowed in victory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what do my readers think?


	25. Traveler's Rest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The long-awaited 'Destiny' cross-over! In which the Dragon Flyz make some new friends, and the Guardians learn their 'Last City' is anything but…

We join our heroes, as Dragon Flyz Team One flew over a range of mountains: well-known and mapped in detail before the Cataclysm, but now uncharted and hazardous ever since. 

Said Peak: 'Wahoo! Look at all this snow! Ready to make some snow-dragons, Zenith?'.

Zenith answered: 'Keep your eyes on the skies, Peak! We're scouting here in unfamiliar territory; so keep it down!'. 

With that, they flew over a ridge, and Peak said: 'O: look at the size of that thing!'.

It was, in truth, immense: a seamless blue-white orb, many times as large as Airlandis itself, which held itself, as if supported by invisible pillars, above an earth-bound city. So monstrous was the orb, it pierced the Warp Winds; and the city below, though it filled the valley in which it lay, seemed little more than a stain upon the floor. 

At the edge of this city rose a skyscraper as large as a mountain; and its top-floor was a terrace, where people moved and gathered. On this, now the dragons alighted, and their riders dismounted. One of the locals said: 'Welcome, newcomers, to Traveler's Rest. Come; the Speaker will want to see you'. 

The Dragon Flyz dismounted, and followed the locals into another hall, where another figure waited them: a tall man enveloped entirely by cream-colored robes and armor, with his face and head hidden by a featureless mask. Quoth he: 'Welcome, newcomers, to Traveler's Rest. I am the Speaker, and you are our honored guests. I am sure you are wondering: why we have allowed you into our city so easily? To which the answer is: the Traveler, which floats above our City, would not have allowed you past, if your hearts were not pure'. 

Said Peak: 'Whoa; stop me if I'm going wrong; but that mini-Moon didn't look very defensive to me'. 

The Speaker answered: 'It did not, because you are good at heart, and at one with us. The Traveler projects a light, which cannot be borne by those of evil will. Because it let you past, and you felt nothing, we know you are good, and welcome to our City'. 

Said Apex: 'Tell us more about your City’.

The Speaker answered: ‘It was built shortly after the Cataclysm, when the Traveler stopped its travels in this place. Guided by our soldiers, more people gathered here, and the city was built of old machinery, into its present size’. 

Quoth Summit: 'If the Traveler's Light keeps your enemies out, why do you have soldiers?'. 

Said the Speaker: 'Our soldiers, the Guardians, venture outside the City, for reconnaissance purposes (much as you, I think). There, they fight against the Fallen, our enemies, and go in search of machines to repair'. 

Quoth Summit: 'What do you mean?’.

The Speaker answered: 'In Traveler's Rest, we do not make new things; we only repair and reconstruct the technologies built by our ancestors. It is part of a Guardian's duty to find them'. 

Said Zenith: 'We use Amber crystals; what's your source of energy?’.

The Speaker answered: 'Again: the Traveler's Light, which we use for every purpose we need'. 

Quoth Summit: 'How did it come here?'.

Apex added: 'And why is it called the Traveler?'. 

The Speaker answered: 'Before the Cataclysm, the astronauts of the Earth found the Traveler on the neighboring planet of Mars. Our scientists found it to contain the world-building technology of an ancient interstellar civilization. With that technology, we established colonies on other planets, all over the Solar System, and built the most wondrous of civilizations;–– but it could not last. Alien species from other Solar Systems sought the Traveler's power for their own; and when the Traveler tried to abandon us and escape, we broke its engines, and it came to rest above this place. Those who survived the war, built the City here, where the Traveler's Light was still strong; they were our ancestors'. 

Quoth Summit: 'But where does Warnado fit into all this?’.

The Speaker answered: 'The Warnado, as you call it, was the cause of the Cataclysm: of that, we are certain. It fell from the sky in a blazing trail; and at that moment, civilization was annihilated. But you have seen more of it than we have, who seldom venture beyond our walls'. 

Said Peak: 'Not the sort of life I'd like to live'. 

Said Apex: 'We live in a flying city, called Airlandis; but we can't stay there for ever. Do you know of any place we could colonize on Earth?'. 

Said the Speaker: 'Any number of your people are welcome to settle here, in Traveler's Rest, if you so choose. We have room and people enough to accommodate you all. In the meantime, you four, and your dragon steeds, may come and go as you wish'.

The Dragon Flyz thanked him, and wandered all over the Tower Plaza, with their eyes wide with admiration at the sight of its shining walls, sparkling fountains, blooming gardens, ornate carpets, and intricate open-works. Wherever they went in the Plaza, people, and things like people, greeted them as friends. 

After a moment, their wanderings took them into the map-room, where they were met by a tall man in heavy armor, who said: 'Welcome, dragonators, to Traveler's Rest. I am Commander Zavala; this is Commander Ikora; and this is the newly-appointed Commander Cayde'.

Said Apex, to Cayde: 'You're a cybernetic construct, aren't you? Do you know of another, named Cifex?'.

Cayde answered: 'Can't say I know'm personally, li'l lady. Ikora's the librarian around here'.

Commander Ikora typed on her computer for a moment, then said: 'The Cifexes were a model of cybernetic construct, much like Cayde. We have none here, but it seems you knew one, and remembered him fondly'.

Said Apex: 'He died fighting alongside us'.

Said Commander Zavala: 'I don't wish to press you, friends, but I recommend you return to your own city soon, and convey the Speaker's offer'.

Said Summit: 'As soon as we've finished admiring yours, we will'.

Peak glanced at a nearby Guardian's armor, and asked: ‘Whoa! Are those dragon bones?’.

Said the Guardian: ‘Could be. We call’m, Bones of the Dire Ahamkara. Legend has it, they were somethin’ like your dragons. But nobody’s seen one for years, until you people showed up’.

Said Apex: ‘It’s not impossible, Peak; and it doesn’t make them our enemies. Even Dread Wing and his mutants ride dragons; or had you forgotten that?’.

Said Peak: ‘No; I didn’t forget that, and I’m not in any danger of forgetting this. Even I’d never wear Blackheart or Nightmare’s bones, if I were lucky enough t’ destroy ’m’.

The Guardian answered: 'Di'n' mean t' give the wrong 'mpression, friend. The name's Bernard, and these are my partners, Meva Halide and Nathan Merioux'.

After that, the Guardians and the Dragon Flyz told stories of their homelands and adventures, until the time came for the Dragon Flyz to return to Airlandis. Once there, they brought the Speaker's offer to the Council.

Said Orac: 'These Amber-reactors are my babies;–– but they won't last for ever. I have to work non-stop, to keep them going! A place where Dread and his lackeys can't go, sounds like a good place to me'. 

Said Elspeth: 'But how do we know, the Traveler's Light protects its City from Dread Wing? Perhaps only the Fallen are vulnerable to it'. 

Said Zenith: 'I worry about the same thing. For once, I agree with Josh.: we need to be careful before we abandon what we have, even for a promise'. 

Said Zarkan: ‘Our people are on the increase. If Traveler’s Rest can hold even one-third of us, their offer of hospitality is worth our acceptance’. 

Said Joshua: 'I feel we are making a grave error. But if the Voice of the Council be as one, we shall move a convoy to Traveler's Rest. What is the Voice of the Council?'. 

Everyone answered: 'It is One'. 

On Warnado, Dread Wing stamped into Gangrene's evil laboratory and said: 'This better be good, Gangrene. If you've distracted me for no reason, you'll soon see why I'm still Lord and Master here'.

Said Gangrene: 'I'm sorry to report this, my Supreme Dreadfulness; but I can only admit the truth. The entire population of Airlandis appears to be;–– moving!'. 

Said Dread Wing: '“Moving”?! That can mean only one thing: they've found a new place to colonize! A new place, to found their own kingdom! Fryte! Rally the Dramen. Nocturna! Ready your weapons. We'll stand at the road they travel, to-night, and head them off at the pass! I will not allow another incursion! This time, they have gone too far to turn back, and survive!'. 

Elsewhere, the Dragon Flyz flew as the escorts of a convoy of strato-gliders, which bore all the Airlandians toward Traveler's Rest; but they had not gone far, before plasma-blasts and Dramen darts and the screeching of Gremwings filled the air. Said Zenith: 'It's a trap! Cut and dive!'. 

With that, the dragons swerved under the Dramen, and the Dragon Flyz fired on them from below. Said Dread Wing: 'They fire on me from my own place: the ground! The insolence! Destroy them all!', and the Dramen retaliated with their plasma-blasters. But the dragonators fought just as hard. Gremwings and Dark Dramen fell from the sky like rain, and the air was cross-hatched with the Windjammers’ blasts and the answering shots of the Dramen. Zenith called: 'Surround the transports! Don't let Dread's minions near the civilians!'.

Said Dread Wing: 'Did you hear that?! How nice of them to show us! Now, fire where it burns! Destroy the strato-gliders!', and the Dramen trained their plasma-blasters on them. The Dragon Flyz interposed themselves, and the fight grew hotter yet. 

At length, Summit called: 'There's too many of them! We have to retreat!'; but all of a sudden, a new sort of fire smote the Gremwings. 

Said Zenith: 'Who's firing?'.

Apex answered: 'It's the Guardians, Zenith! They've come to help!'. 

Sure enough: the Guardians of Traveler's Rest had arrived, and their shots soon destroyed most of the enemy. Said Meva: 'You just take it easy, Dragon Flyz; these critters are toast;–– butter-side down'. 

Said Peak: ‘Boy! am I glad you showed up!', and fired again at Dread Wing's forces. 

In the battle that followed, Dread Wing on Blackheart called: 'We are outnumbered! Retreat! Back to Warnado! The end is not yet, Dragon Flyz! I'll see you, and your new friends, go down in smoke;–– for ever!', and led the retreat himself. 

Said Peak: 'You're the one going down in smoke, Dread Wing’.

Merioux added: 'Yup! It looks like we smoked him;–– together'. 

Soon afterwards, the Council of Airlandis met with the Speaker and Commanders of Traveler's Rest. 

Said Joshua: 'After all that happened, we cannot accept your offer. But as long as each of our cities knows the other exists, we still have a hope, we are not the last survival of humankind'. 

Said the Speaker: 'We are sorry to see you go, Joshua. But if ever you need a refuge, Traveler's Rest is always open to you; and we will allow your people to establish cities on our mountains'. 

Zenith agreed: 'That's a good place to start. We'll prepare for it. And if you ever need air-support, you can call on us. After all, flight is might’. 

The dragons bugled their agreement, and the Airlandians returned to their city.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was written before any of Destiny's 'expansions', and so might be said to take place before the events of 'The Taken King' or its sequels. Just as obviously, it was written before the 'Darkness' in the story became identified with any material thing; and in light (no pun intended) of later revelations, I find myself in the unenviable position of identifying the Warnado with a Darkness Pyramid! It takes a little imagination, unless we recall the brief glimpse of Warnado's full size and shape on the occasion of its Rising.

**Author's Note:**

> To be continued…


End file.
